Reaching For Heaven
by TwilightMoon7765
Summary: Come one, come all, humans and mythical creatures alike! Welcome to hell! It's a bit hard to adjust to life here at first, but I know you'll just love it." What if Bella was the demon Edward thought she was? Sounds weird.. not great at summaries.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One

BPOV

"Welcome to the Underworld everyone! I know it may be a little warm but you'll get used to it. Now, there are 7 gates around here. Each gate takes you deeper into our world. If you are allowed to by our king, you may feel free to pass between the gates. But be warned. Many of the demons down here are not allowed to travel between them. They will try to trick you into helping them. If you were to help one, you will be sent beyond the 7th gate, into the core of our world, where you will remain for all eternity, most likely working in the mines harvesting demon gems... rather lovely gems though. Anyway, enjoy your stay here because you are stuck here."

I rolled my eyes. Sounds like Aspasia is breaking in the new arrivals. Great…new annoying children to deal with. You know, she's actually lying. When one dies, you are stuck behind one of the gates, depending on how good or evil your life was. Before you even think about asking if there's a heaven, don't even bother. Now, I'm not saying that there's no possibility that a heaven exists, but when you've lived here all your life… well I suppose you get my picture. Anyway, there are two parts to the Underworld. There is the human region and the demon region. My house rested in between the two regions, so I could hear and see nearly everything happening in both regions.

"Kallisto? Where are you? You know we have to prepare you for tonight. You're meeting your future husband."

Meet my mother. She's 6800 years old……I know, she's rather old. But her spirit is that of a woman in her 20s. You see, we as demons get to choose how old we wish our bodies to appear. Though our spirits remain one age, our bodies can change from been a small infant to being 100 years old. Her name is Nerva. Yes I know it is a bit different, but it's rather fitting. It means strength, and if I were in her position, hell I'd need all the strength I could get.

As you probably already noticed, my name is Kallisto, meaning the most beautiful and I'm 3000 years old. I'm a plain, thin girl with boring brown hair and silver eyes. Much different from my blonde haired, blue eyed supermodel mother. She's eccentric, but a bit predicable. Continuing my oh so exciting description of myself, not to brag or anything... but I'm kinda smart.... really smart. And no it's not because I've lived for so long because as I said earlier, I have never been beyond the 7th gate. Things just always kinda came to me. And I think the whole "most beautiful" thing is a load of shit but whatever.

Anyway, I'm much more like my father, Tacitus, which means silent. While she prefers to journey outside the castle and mingle with the others, father and I prefer to stay inside and read. He's an extremely quiet man who prefers to watch my mother in silent admiration than in flashy manner. I get all my looks from him, the brown hair and silver eyes. I guess you could say that my mother and I have the same body type, though mine may be a bit more muscular because of father.

"Princess?"

Oh, did I mention we're the royal family? The rulers of the demon world? Well, now you know. And I absolutely despise it. I am forbidden from leaving the core. Yes, I am trapped beyond the last gate simply because my father doesn't want me wandering around. Not fair. So, I'm taking matters into my own hands. I don't want to be a princess. I hate dressing up and I hate being controlled.

I quickly packed the belongings I would need: My mother's pendent, my father's sword, my own bow and arrows, and my mirror. My mother's pendent would not only help me escape, but it would also help me hide my real identity, my father's sword and my bow and arrows would obviously defend me when I reach the human world, and my mirror would help me see the future of certain individuals.

Before my mother could open the door, I jumped out the window of my bedroom and ran away into the flames that covered my world.

I really don't know how I did it. Normally, there is an invisible barrier that keeps whoever can't come out in. But for some reason, the shield was off. Something told me that I should turn around and report it to my father so he could look into it. But I was too caught up in my current victory to even consider turning back. So, I kept going…and I didn't stop until I reached the final passage way into the human world.

"Princess Kallisto?"

I turned to the gate keeper, who was staring at me with complete shock in his eyes. "I'm on a mission for my father. It's supposed to be a secret so if anyone shows interest, I was never here. Please, it's for the king." He sighed and nodded. As I passed through, I took one last look at the place that had been home for so many years. I might return one day…but not for a long time.

"Goodbye."

* * *

I arrived in the human world on September 12, 1935 to a small town called Forks. It seemed like a good place to settle down and live. I placed on my mother's pendent the moment I arrived. I felt my long nails retracting into a natural length, my skin went from being a light pearly color to a normal human tone, my ears became less elf-like, my tail disappeared, and my eyes changed from a gorgeous silver to a dull and boring brown.

As I explored the town, I began to smell a very sweet scent floating through the air. I followed it into the woods, the scent suddenly joining with another. The second had a more woodsy, earthy smell to it. I jumped up into the trees, following both scents deep into the woods. I was about to give up and turn around, when a sudden bark caught my attention. A huge furry animal came smashing into the tree I was in. The tree collapsed, me along with it. As I hid myself amongst the fallen leaves, I heard the wolf whine in pain, but from what I could tell, he got up just fine. I heard him sniffing around, trying to pick up the scent he was probably following. I slowly lifted my head and tried to find a place to hide. Unfortunately, the wolf saw me before I could get away.

His teeth dug into my shoulder, and I felt myself being dragged into the heat of a battle. I saw 4 others who didn't have fur like myself also struggling against their furry adversaries. The wolf that was dragging me threw me into the middle of the brawl and howled. I immediately froze, my body acting as if I was dead. "STOP!" A blonde haired man rushed up to me and began searching for a pulse. The wolves disappeared and humans returned in their place. "Uley! What have you done?!" The one who seemed to be their leader was completely shocked. "What? She smelled like the cold ones here.... I figured she was tr--" Their leader punched him in the stomach. "Obviously she's not. She's a human you idiot."

I waited until the blonde's hands left my body, and as soon as they did, I shot out from underneath him, and punched the human... wolf.... thing that had annoyed and hurt me. I knew my arm was in bad shape but there was really nothing I could do. I looked around at my surroundings and caught sight of two beautiful women, one with blonde hair and the other with carmel colored hair. Then I saw a gorgeous young man with bronze hair. His golden eyes bore into mine, wonder and shock completely present. I shot him a confused look and snuck a glance at my mirror. My eyes widened.... my now silver eyes. I sighed, oh well... the damage was done. My hair fell in front of my eyes as I raised my head back to meet his gaze. I smiled at him and winked as I heard shouts of "bloodsucker!" I shot off into the woods giggling. I felt a little bad about just leaving them like that, but if word got out, I may be stuck in hell again.

I never did see that stunning family again. I didn't remain in Forks for very long. Well, I actually rushed out of Forks. Anyway, I went to high school and college in the south, majoring in forensic anthropology and gained my doctrine. After that I just kinda wandered. It was amazing though. I went all over the world and learned so many things. I could speak at least nine different languages now.

But, I was lonely.

So, I returned to Forks in hopes of finding a home. As I traveled through the city, I came upon a young couple walking around like I was. The woman was very pregnant, most likely in her last month. The man was handsome, at least to human eyes he was. "Charlie, can we please go home? I really don't feel well." So the man's name was Charlie. "We're almost back Renee. Just a couple more blocks." They passed by me, and I pulled out my mirror as they passed.

Renee was going to have a daughter tomorrow.... but she would be too weak from a blood deficiency and she wouldn't make it. As saddening as that is, this was the perfect chance for me. Now I can really escape anyone who is possibly following me. I know it sounds wrong, but I can pose as Renee and Charlie's daughter. I mean, it's better than not having a daughter at all. So, I found the only hospital in town and waited.

The couple came the next day, rushing the woman inside. I followed behind at a normal pace, pretending I was coming to visit a patient. I could hear Renee's screams from I believe the 3rd floor. Good God that woman could scream. I heard the light cries of a baby begin. Damn it...I mean yay for the couple, but that makes it difficult for me.

"Where are you going with my daughter?! Give her to me right now!"

"Please ma'am. Something doesn't seem right. I will return with her momentarily. Please just rest." I guess it's now or never. I stole one of the nurses uniforms and followed the doctor into the examination room. "Do you need any help sir?" The doctor turned to me. "Ah yes that would be wonderful. I'm going to go grab this little one's charts. Could you please watch her?" He was out the door before I had a chance to possibly decline.

I watched the girl as her cries became quieter and her little heartbeat began to fade away. I felt tears running down my face even though I knew this was going to happen. The least I could do was make sure she arrived to the Underworld safely, and try to ensure that she was placed in a loving home in the human region. As her heart began to stop, I passed my hand over her body, safely passing both her body and her spirit past the passage way. Tears fell more rapidly as her body began to fade and disappear. What if I just made a terrible mistake? What if she could have been saved?

I shook my head. Sadly, her future was clear. There was nothing anyone could have done. "Nurse? How is she doing?" I froze. Crap...I had forgotten about the doctor. I closed my eyes and focused on becoming an infant, hoping that I could not only do it quick enough, but that there wouldn't be any visible difference between myself and the girl. When I reopened my eyes, I sighed in happiness. It had worked. "Where did that Nurse go?" He grumbled. "Can't trust the help these days." He smiled when he saw that she.. I mean I was no longer crying. He checked me over once more, then picked me up.

He placed me into the arms of Renee, my new mother. "Hello sweetie. Aren't you just gorgeous? Charlie, let's name her Isabella. Isabella Marie Swan."

And so began my new life.

* * *

**Alright well here's my new story. I hope you all will enjoy this one. Please R&R! And flame me please, I would like to her your criticism if there is anything.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Okey dokey time for me to finally update this. I'm sorry that I haven't updated in some time... actually I don't remember the last time I did.... ANYWAY school sucks because I have bunches of junk to do in less than 2 weeks time... but christmas break is coming and I will be writing more often.... I hope ^_^. I took the case idea from an episode of Bones, and that's probably where most of the case ideas will come from. I am not that creative and am incapable of creating such interesting ideas. Here's chapter 2 of Reaching for Heaven. Please review!!**

**I do not own Bones nor do I own Twilight  
**

Chapter Two

BPOV

The next 13 years of my life were spent with Renee... after she left Charlie a month after my "birth." She'd move us somewhere, find a loser for a boyfriend, get her heart broken, then we'd pack up and leave the next day. Yup, my life consisted of moving and Renee bringing home strange men whom she swore would never take any time away from the time she spent with me (which was always a lie and they always did) and me becoming musical... well more musical I should say. Before this, I was able to play the piano, violin, and I could sing. Now I can do those plus the guitar and the flute. And now I have enough time to write my own songs. Anyway, whenever Renee has left me to fend for myself, I pick up my guitar and just start playing.... and I'll play for hours, not even really realizing the time that has passed. And when I put it down because of something, I can feel my fingers itching to get back to it and being again.

I never did see that strange family from Forks again. I suppose most of the time we moved, we stayed in the south, where Renee could bask in the sun and I could stay inside all day long, completely ignoring her requests to join her. Just in case you're wondering, all my past degrees and diplomas have been safely hidden, where only I could find them. The only thing I've kept with me at all times is the pendent. If I didn't have that with me, I think Renee would either a) beat me with a stick demanding to know where her daughter was or she would b) not even notice... how wonderful... Anyway back to music. It has made me more creative than I have ever been in my past 3000 years. I'm sure you're wondering what the heck I did all those years.. well put it this way: if you need help shopping or planning a party, call me up. But don't expect me to be all sunny sunshine about it. Spending almost all your life planning and attending extremely dull social gatherings... well you tend to pick a few things up, like the do's and do not's of a big holiday party. Yes, we did celebrate Thanksgiving and Christmas, as ironic as that sounds.

But with this new musical gain, its like I see both sides clearer. No matter how much easier it is to write depressing lyrics of a lost love or something, I enjoy the challenge of writing something happy, like finding the lost love and living happily. That probably made no sense... well it did to me. It's just so much easier to claim that one is angry, depressed, or confused because we wish to protect ourselves from rejection, when in fact we are the ones doing the rejecting. Reaching for the feelings outside our comfort zone that maybe we aren't familiar with or have had bad experiences with in the past makes us expose ourselves... something we all try to avoid. Hey, at least I can claim that I tried. I tried to expose myself and keep those feelings alive, always doing new things or doing old things with new people. Possibly, that's the reason many humans cut themselves short. That which they want makes them feel or reach for something they believe is above them.... when in fact, sometimes, they are above it... that which we're dreaming of actually is what we need....

Wow, completely random tangent that has absolutely nothing to do with anything.... Continuing with Renee, I eventually got tired of how often she moved us around. I wish she had stayed with Charlie, but apparently she couldn't stand the little, quiet town anymore. So, she packed her bags and me, and left. Where all the money that was needed for us to move as often as we did.... that just kinda appeared. She was only a part time kindergarden teacher and that barely paid for my babysitters. Of course I never asked since it would be a little strange for a 13 year old child to be worrying about finances... not that it doesn't happen, but she may just lose it if I appear more mature than her.

We were living in Phoenix when I finally cracked. She had met some guy named Phil who played minor league baseball... and he was probably going to be stuck there forever. He was nice enough and treated me well enough, but I had already made up my mind. So, I called Charlie to tell him that I was coming home, packed my things (i.e. my diplomas and other trinkets), bought a ticket, left Renee a note, and left. I was tired of acting like an ignorant child who has to somehow take care of her own mother. I knew Charlie could handle my maturity much better than Renee could.

"Bells! It's great to see you again kiddo! I've missed you." I saw him outside of the airport after my plane landed. I dashed into his wide open arms and hugged him as tightly as I could.... without hurting him. He may not be my real father, but he may as well be. He has the same color hair and the same personality as Tacitus, but he's not a demon.

"So, how's your mother doing?"

I felt sorry for the man. He loved Renee so much, even though his feelings weren't returned. I honestly think that he would go to any limit to protect her and possibly win her back.

"She's fine. She met some guy named Phil." He was silent, almost begging me to continue, "He's nice enough. Maybe a little bit too young, but then again I never really met the man."I

The rest of the ride home was silent, except for my occasional humming of some tune that was playing on the radio. I could see the corners of his eyes crinkle in happiness as I sang along with some song, soaking in the fact that his "daughter" was really back to stay. I cooked dinner that night. It must have been strange for him to not be eating pizza or take out, because when I set down the dish, he stared at it as if he expected to move and break out into song and dance or something. And it was only spaghetti. He had left the house about an hour after picking me up from the airport, saying he was going to get some case file from the station and that he would be back in less than an hour. When he returned and noticed that there was no pizza or take out waiting for him, he came running into the kitchen to see what I had possibly burned.

Boy was he shocked when he saw a fresh plate of spaghetti sitting before his usual spot. "You can cook Bella?" I smiled.

"Sometimes I would be home alone for hours at a time during the night since Mom was always working late. So I would cook dinner and leave her plate in the microwave where she would eventually find it and eat it whenever she got home." We sat down and began eating in silence.

"Dad, can I go to work with you this weekend?"

I missed working with the police and others in the anthropology department. It was always my favorite topic because I wanted to make a difference. I didn't want to be just Bella Swan, a runaway demon and the daughter of a police chief and flighty mother... I wanted to be someone. I liked the puzzles that the human body and mind created for me. Each case, each story had a special set of morals that created a new adventure for everyone, a new chance to learn.

"Sure, I don't see why not. You can come with me as long as you get all your homework done before Saturday." I had to resist rolling my eyes. Demons don't need homework. Nevertheless, I finished it all before Saturday.

I suppose I should explain a little bit about demons. We differ from the other mythical creatures living in the human world because of our appearances mostly. I think the closest creature you could compare demons to is the vampire. Ah, sparked a little memory there didn't I? Well, we're essentially the same as vampires, with the pale skin, the immortality, the beauty, the strength and speed....I think you get the point. The differences lie in our diets. While vampires can only survive on blood, regardless of whether or not it's human blood, demons can eat human food. But, as the vegetarian vampires would say, it's like soy milk and tofu... compared to our wine or brandy, which is vampire venom. That's the addiction for us. I've never had it before, nor do I plan to unless the situation absolutely demands it. Anyway, demons can also sleep. We don't really have to, but it's nice to escape from the world sometimes, and to drift into our own worlds.

I think one of the biggest differences is the ability to pretty much completely hide what I am. With my special amulet, I can make myself appear so human that I can cry and blush to certain extents. With those kinds of amulets, we can hide our true forms, which normally consist of elf like ears, long claw-like nails, and one of the only things the humans got correct, the long tail with the pointed end. The eyes change from demon to demon, like they do for humans. But, we wear our color with pride, since it is our birthmark, showing the family we belong to. The color of our eyes is the pride and joy of a demon family....I wish I didn't have to hide mine.

Anyway, Saturday came quickly and I was excited. Though the police probably wouldn't listen to me, I was glad that I got to solve puzzles again. "Charlie, we've got a case. Some kid was found in an alleyway. Most of the force suspects foul play, but there's no way to prove it. Could you come have a look?" I followed Charlie, much to his dismay. He warned me that I wouldn't like it and that he would rather me stay in his office. But I tagged along anyway.

Sure enough, on one of the examination tables, lay a boy no older than me. As Charlie looked him over with a doctor, I caught sight of a stab wound. "Dad, it was murder. Look here. There's some kind of stab wound.... but it wasn't made by a knife." He and the doctor both looked where I had pointed to and, after recovering from the initial shock, agreed with me. I suggested that it was someone who the teen had worked for, and that some sort of sharp object used for that job was used as the weapon. It turns out that the owner of the bowling ball facility, the one the kid had worked for, abused his wife and had killed the boy for trying to save the wife.

Go figure.

"Wow Bella. How did you figure that out?" I shrugged. "Lucky guess."

The next 4 years I lived in Forks and I worked with the police, solving murder cases. I chose not to have really any friends.... the ones who considered themselves my friends were really only people I had seen before. I honestly couldn't tell you all of their names. In my junior year however, all of that was about to change.

"Ok everyone you all know what you're doing when the Cullens arrive correct?" The head slut... excuse me... whore of the school, Lauren, already knew almost everything about this family moving in, called the Cullens, and wanted to impress the one who was single. She had given everyone a specific job to do. Her penetrating yet weak gaze came to rest on me. "And what are you going to Swan?" I smiled.

"I will sit in my tree, play with my bones, and pretend that I don't exist."

She smirked and continued down the line. Eventually everyone had gone and 3 extremely nice cars pulled into the parking lot. "Positions everyone!" I rolled my eyes as I grabbed the skull I was gluing together. I chose to sit in the tree nearest to the parking lot, and began to glue the pieces together. I was tapping my foot to some music when something tapped at my leg. I looked down at the most gorgeous man I had ever seen.....

It was the bronze haired god I had seen all those years ago.

* * *

** I hope you enjoyed that and I hope that this will hold until I get out for break, which is rather soon. Anyway, thanks for reading!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey everyone! Sorry I haven't updated in such a long time. I got really busy with school but now since I'm on break I'll be writing more. Again, case ideas are from Bones, but (as far as I know) the OC's are mine(excluding the principal). Enjoy chapter 3!**

Chapter Three

BPOV

I did what any normal person would have done.

I fell off the tree.

Ok, well, maybe I'm the only one that would do that, but I'm not normal now am I? I squeaked as I fell from the branch onto the uninviting dirt below me. I felt the thorns in the very comfortable bush I had managed to fall into pricking into my skin. I quickly rolled myself out of the bushes and back up onto my feet. One of the men standing behind the bronze haired one that had haunted my dreams for nearly the past century began to laugh. I shook my head a little and dusted myself off. "I don't get it..." They all cocked their heads. "Don't get what?" A small, black haired girl replied.

"I've been kidnapped multiple times, been tortured twice, and been held at both gun and knife point.... yet I fall out of a tree when a cute guy comes to ask me a most likely simple question such as 'where is the admissions office?'. Something's off here..." I shook my head again. I could hear chuckles rippling through their group. "Well, I was going to say that we are the Cullens, and I suppose you were correct when you assumed we wanted to know where the admissions office was." My eyes met the topaz eyes of the bronze haired one when I lifted my head. I felt like I was melting into gold as I stared into his eyes.

Of course, the moment was ruined.

"Oh my gosh! Are you alright Bella?" I turned to meet the gaze of the last person I'd ever want to be stuck on earth with... Lauren. I raised my eyebrow as she gave me a look that clearly said 'Screw my chances of getting into this guy's pants and I'll screw your life.'

"Yes I'm just fine Lauren. Thank you so much for caring." The Cullens were laughing behind me. She sighed, "I'm terribly sorry about Bella here. She has some problems sometimes." I stared at her then turned to the Cullens, completely confused. "If you would come with me, I can take you to the office." She turned around and some of them began to follow her. I started laughing. "If you value your brain cells, you can come with me. The office is the other way. If not, please continue to follow her. Just don't say I didn't warn you." They all laughed once more and nodded. I picked up all my things sitting in the tree and stuffed them into my bag. "Let me finish this really quick and I'll take you." I pulled the skull down and glued in the last few pieces.

"Is that a skull?" I heard one of the boys behind me gulp and I laughed. I turned around and held it up by my face. "Yes, this is Jane 2343. She was found in the middle of pond about a week ago and people are questioning whether or not it was murder." I rolled my eyes at the stupidity. You don't find someone wrapped up in a bag, with their arms and legs tied together, and question if it was murder. But, I suppose that's what we're doing here. "Follow me." And I said no more on the subject.

EPOV

I hate high school. Maybe it's fun the first time around, but when you start to lose track of how many times you've graduated, something is clearly wrong. But I suppose this is what I get for being what I am. Alice has been hinting that I'll like this round of high school, but I doubt it. The only thing that would make it better is if I see one girl... with silver eyes. God she was gorgeous. I wanted to chase after her when she escaped from the flea ridden dog's clutches, but by the time we had worked out a treaty, the trail had disappeared. I spent a couple of days trying to find it again, but returned home in vain.

I never did forget her though. She frequently haunted my every thought and whenever I closed my eyes, she was all I could see. But, I doubt that I'll ever see her again. She was not a vampire, that much I knew from our chance encounter... but since she clearly was not human either... maybe she still exists... somewhere.

Anyway, I heard the thoughts of my future classmates... or should I say children which we will babysit while mommy and daddy are working?

_Oh my god! That must be them!_

_I have to make a perfect impression on Edward _(please tell me this: how the hell does she know my name?). _He won't want to be single after he sees this._

_Oh dear.... Lauren's gone overboard once more._

_I hope we're playing something fun in PE..._

_Damn, Bella's never looked hotter. God I wish she was mine._

I pulled out of their thoughts completely disgusted once again. I should have expected it, but every time I hear the thoughts of humans, I am shocked at their stupidity. Was I like this when I was human? I shook my head and my family began to laugh. "Sucks to be you Ed." I growled at Emmett's nickname. "You don't need to remind me."

As we pulled into the parking lot, I saw a group of students standing at the entrance to the school, clearly expecting us. "I vote we avoid them. Just a thought." I rolled my eyes at Emmett's stupid comment. I looked around for someone who wasn't in the group, or I suppose who was acting more semi-normal than the group. I saw a girl sitting in a tree not to far away holding something in her hands and tapping along to some sort of beat. "Well, go ask her Edward." I turned to glance at Esme. She nodded and pushed me in the direction of the girl.

She didn't look up as I approached her. Whatever she was holding clearly had all her attention. I waited for the familiar burn in the back of my throat to begin, but I was strangely met with nothing more than the pleasant scent of freesia and strawberries. I couldn't really see any other way to get her attention than to tap on her leg. She took one look at me....

And fell off the tree.

_Oh dear! Is the poor child ok?_

_Edward! What did you do? _I shrugged at Alice.

_Haha! I like this human. Can we be friends with her? Please Eddie?_

_She wasn't afraid, simply surprised and shocked. _Jasper cocked his head a bit when he realized the girl wasn't afraid.

"I don't get it..." I turned back to the girl and was stunned. She was beautiful. Not an obvious, in you face beauty like Rosalie... but a regal beauty. Her brown hair curled to her face perfectly, framing her heart shaped face. I couldn't really see her eyes, but something about her made me hope that she was the one I had been troubled by. "Don't get what?" Alice said.

"I've been kidnapped multiple times, been tortured twice, and been held at both gun and knife point.... yet I fall out of a tree when a cute guy comes to ask me a most likely simple question such as 'where is the admissions office?'. Something's off here..." Damn, she's been through a lot. Funny, I never would have guessed she'd had those things happen to her. Her body, from what I could tell, wasn't covered in scars or anything. Wait... did she just call me cute? Normally, I would feel disgusted by this. But....

This time was different. I liked it.

I chuckled. "Well, I was going to say that we are the Cullens, and I suppose you were correct when you assumed we wanted to know where the admissions office was." She lifted her head to meet my gaze. Orbs of endless brown met my topaz ones and I felt frozen. These may have not been the enticing silver my heart wanted, but they were a close second. But, before I could do anything, someone interrupted.

"Oh my gosh! Are you alright Bella?" So, her name was Bella. Very fitting. The girl said something else (of course I wasn't paying attention), and then began to walk away. Some of my family started to follow her, only to stop when Bella began to laugh. "If you value your brain cells, you can come with me. The office is the other way. If not, please continue to follow her. Just don't say I didn't warn you."" We all laughed at this and nodded for her to lead the way. She quickly went back up the tree and began stuffing things into her backpack. She stopped when she reached a rather large white object and turned away from us. "Let me finish this really quick and I'll take you." She picked up pieces that I assume belonged to the object and began fitting them together, as if she were doing a puzzle.

Emmett was the first to realize what she was holding. He gulped. "Is that a skull?" He always hated looking at skeletons. I rolled my eyes. He's a blood sucking vampire and he's afraid of skeletons. Oh the irony. Bella laughed and turned back around, holding the skull close to her face. "Yes, this is Jane 2343. She was found in the middle of pond about a week ago and people are questioning whether or not it was murder." She rolled her eyes, as if she agreed with me in the irony of Emmett fearing skeletons. That was obviously not the case, but oh well. "Follow me." And she said nothing more about this Jane 2343 as she led us to the office.

It was a bit of a walk to admissions, so I took the time to take in the rest of her appearance. She was wearing a blue, long sleeved shirt that nicely contrasted with her skin. Her long legs were covered in jeans, and a pair of boots covered her feet. On her head, she wore a blue beret. Her hair went down her back, ending at her upper back. It waved and curled everywhere, flowing with her figure. She was carrying her bag from earlier, a red tote bag. I saw a couple of books in it, but mostly files arranged in almost no order. And let's not forget Emmett's new friend: Jane 2343.

I sighed as I realized how long I had lived with Alice. I could tell you nearly everything about what Bella was wearing, where she probably got it, what it was made of, and who made it. That, my friends, is the sign of a man losing his mind. I have no idea how Jasper handles it.

"Oh, hello Isabella. What are you doing here?" A middle aged woman sat at the front desk. "Hello Mrs. Cope. I've brought our new students and their parents, the Cullens." The only reason why Esme and Carlisle are here is because it was required of all new parents. Be given a tour of the school with your sons or daughters while being assured that this was the best learning environment the city had to offer.... or in the case of this town...

The only learning environment.

"Oh, well you can go on into Mr. Casper's office now **(I can't remember if the principal's name is mentioned...). **He's been expecting you all."

BPOV

I led the Cullens into Mr. Casper's office, immediately going over to his file cabinet and started searching through it for a file. I could feel the Cullens shocked stares boring into my back, but it didn't worry me. "I've done this before. He won't mind. Just act like nothings wrong." I heard the door open and Mr. Casper's voice filled the room. "Hello, you must be Dr. and Mrs. Cullen. It's a pleasure to finally meet you." I heard his feet shuffle over towards his desk and I heard the grinding of his chair's wheels as he sat down.

"The pleasure is all mine sir. These are my children: Emmett, Alice, and Edward Cullen. Rosalie and Jasper Hale are my wife's niece and nephew." I chuckled under my breath as I listened to Casper process the information. "But you both look so young. Surely at least one of them has been adopted?" Dr. Cullen laughed. "They are all adopted actually." I finally found what I was looking for and closed the drawer.

"Find it Miss Swan?" I nodded and laid the file down on his desk. "His parents reported him missing when he did not return from a holiday trip with some friends. " He opened the file and immediately shut it. "Hector Raven? The Brazilian ambassador's son? You're sure?" I nodded. He sighed. "I will call his father to inform him that you are looking into it. Thank you Miss Swan." I shoved the file into my already overflowing bag. "It's no problem. Please let him know that I will find out what happened to Hector."

The meeting with Casper didn't last much longer. He asked me to show the Cullens around the school, meaning I had time to look around for some sort of lead in Hector's disappearance. "So Isabella --"

"Bella please sir." Dr. Cullen nodded.

"Tell us Bella. Why is it that Mr. Casper did not care about how you were going through student's files?" I sighed. "Because I work with both the police department here and..." I pulled out my badge, "the FBI on some occasions. My father told me about the ambassador's call and asked me to look into it. Apparently I'm some sort of protege when it comes to crime investigations." I shrugged.

I showed them every building and told them about everyone. "Unless you really don't care about your IQ, I would suggest avoiding Lauren and her followers. They're dumber than wood posts, and they will not hesitate in throwing themselves to you... if you know what I mean." They all chuckled, a little embarrassed and mortified.

As we went past part of the woods, I saw crows gathering around one spot. That means.... oh no..... "Oh no... this is really bad." Edward appeared next to me. "What is it?" I sighed, "Can't you smell it?" He sniffed the air, and recoiled in disgust. "Would one of you please go inform Casper of this? I'm hoping that I'm wrong and that it's just a dead animal." Esme nodded at me and ran back towards Casper's office. "You all may not want to see this so I would suggest staying here." They all shook their heads. I sighed, "Alright, hold your breath though." The bell rang as we ventured towards the foul smell and students began pouring out into the courtyard.

I led our little search party along a forgotten trail in the woods, following both the smell and the birds. I would have lost it, had the birds not flown into a tree. "Oh god..." I buried my head into Edward's chest. "Bones I can handle... rotting flesh and tissue... no..." Edward's arms lightly touched me, one holding my head close to his chest, as if shielding me from the sight. The other wrapped around my waist, simply holding me close.

There was poor Hector Raven.

"You sent for me Bel- Oh no..." I took a deep breath and pulled away from Edward. "We're going to need an evidence bag. Get someone to call my father and bring him here. Keep all the other students away from this area until I deem it safe." Casper nodded and, with the teachers assisting him, escorted the students that had followed us back to the main campus. I reached into my bag and pulled out a set of gloves and a camera. I handed it to Carlisle. "I hate to ask, but can you take some pictures of both the body and the area around?" He nodded, a small sad smile gracing his face.

I heard something crack and looked up to see Hector's head fall. I rushed over to catch it, and nearly fainted at the sight. Alice suppressed a scream as she clung to Jasper. "Edward, reach into my bag and pull out an evidence bag." He nodded and brought one over to me. Carlisle returned a few moments later, with my father and the other policemen following him. He came and took both the camera and the bag from me, lightly shoving me back into the Cullens direction.

"You've done your job Bells. You brought him home. Let us handle the technicalities."

I nodded and turned back to the Cullens and smiled sadly. "Some first day huh?"

* * *

I will be working on the next chapter soon and I will hopefully have it posted before Christmas. Please review and let me know what you thought of this chapter. I know its a little gross but go with it. Happy Holidays everyone!


	4. Chapter 4

**OK well I know the last chapter was a little odd but you'll have to trust me on this. I hate to sound annoying, but sadly I am not Edward and I cannot read someone's mind to know whether or not they like this story. I enjoy writing and if no one likes this idea, I have plenty more I can work on. Anyway, here's chapter four.**

Chapter Four

EPOV

We followed Bella out of the forest. I couldn't really imagine why she chose to pursue this field of work, and when I voiced my opinion, she gave me a half smile. "I know it can produce some rather disgusting and horrific sights, but the fact that I'm fighting for someone who unfortunately couldn't fight for themselves makes it worth it. I can tell you nearly everything about a person's habits, where their body hurt when certain amounts of pressure applied... I can bring out the truth behind their possible murder. I can give them one last voice and I will sure as hell do my best to make sure that they are heard and their side of the story isn't forgotten."

"That is very noble of you."

She shrugged, "I guess. Honor, glory, nobility... it never really mattered to me. Those things don't last if one mistake is made. But the friendships and alliances I've made.... they're more forgiving." I couldn't help but ask.

"How old are you Bella?" Her lips twitched upwards, but remained straight. "I'm seventeen. Though my mother believes that I was born thirty five and get more middle aged every year." She rolled her eyes. "While I believe she was born thirty five and becomes more and more of a rebellious teenager every day." We sat down at a nearby picnic table while we waited for Chief Swan to return with some paperwork for Bella.

"Dr. Cullen?"

I grinned. Where did this shyness come from? Carlisle smiled. "Carlisle please." Bella smiled. "I hate to ask you, but could you do an autopsy? I understand if you don't want to...I mean it is disgusting and last minute but..." He raised his hand. "If it will help you in any way, I'll do it." She gave the biggest smile I've seen her give all day. "Thank you so much. If you want, I can..."

"Bells!" We all turned to see her father coming towards us. "We have everything you and Dr. Cullen need to do an autopsy." She smiled, "Thanks chief." She turned back to us as the boy's remains went by, her eyes closed and her fists clenched. I could smell the blood coming from the body, but it had no hold over me. Fresh blood is the only thing that really appeals to us, whether it's human or not... but I still dug my nails into my palms as I clenched my fists. Jasper was having a bit more trouble with it, but he focused his attention on Bella's emotions, trying to help her stay calm. She smiled slightly as a wave of calm passed over us.

"Miss Swan."

She turned away as a middle aged woman walked up. Then the wind blew. Her scent hit me like tons of bricks being slammed into my forehead. But, that familiar burning in my throat wasn't there... only the heavenly scent of freesia and strawberries. I looked towards Alice, who only shrugged. I would have to ask her about it later. "I will do everything that I can to find out what happened to your son Ambassador Raven." The woman nodded through her tears and walked away. Bella sighed as she sat back down. "It doesn't fit..." I raised my eyebrow. She shook her head.

"Let's hope to god I'm wrong."

As Carlisle did the autopsy, Bella paced around the waiting room. We watched her walk back and forth for a little while, until Alice stood up and put her hands on her shoulders. "Bella, relax. You'll figure it out. Carlisle is almost done." Bella shook her head.

"I doubt it will help. It doesn't point to anything. The only clue that we have is that the hyoid broke. " I looked up.

"He was strangled. The hyoid always breaks in that situation." Bella shook her head.

"In adults, yes. This is a sixteen year old boy. His is flexible. That would require some sort of drug to have been used, to wear down the bone. That's what doesn't fit. Some of the kids at our school may be wasted ninety-nine percent of the time, but none of them would have the drug required to do that. The worst I've seen is kids smoking pot and getting high off cocaine... this would require someone to have ketamine or something, some kind of powerful sedative. Plus, it's not like the school is creating the geniuses to be able to do that..." I raised my eyebrow at her. She rolled her eyes, "Ok well, maybe there's a few, but the others..? No way. The only person who would be smart enough to know what to do is Angela, and she's one of the nicest and most caring people I've ever met."

"So what happened?" Emmett's voice asked the question she wanted the answer to. She shrugged.

"I don't know."

* * *

BPOV

Many months passed after that day. Much to the Ambassador's dismay, I had no choice but to say he killed himself. I personally did not believe it, but I had no choice. If I told people that I was over 3000 years old and I think one of my kind came and killed him for whatever reason, I wouldn't be here. I was disappointed in myself because I couldn't really tell what happened. Of course, when Hector's mother came up to me after my decision was made public... well, it just made my day.

_"You and I both know that my son didn't commit suicide. You shouldn't even be trying to help. You're nothing more than a child!"_

I sank down into the nearest chair at home. Charlie was in Portland for some police convention that I didn't want to go to. I chose to say in Forks and decorate for Christmas. I chose to stay behind to spend time with the Cullens. In the past few months, they basically see me as a sister. Alice was my closest friend, other than Edward. He and I were much closer than I had been with anyone else. We just kinda meshed. We shared similar tastes in music, books, movies, stores... nearly everything. Except for the fact that he hated 70s music, and I liked some. ....I groaned. Who was I kidding? I was falling for him more and more every day. They hadn't told me yet... and I didn't expect them to anytime soon.

I sighed... I needed to go running.

Oh, I forgot to tell you. Remember my pendant? Not only can it hide my form, but it can also change it to something other than human. I shouldn't say other than human because it's either human or animal. It's kinda crazy the things that bored demons can invent. I mean, it's not like we spend eternity literally doing nothing except... well, inventing. Anyway, I can be anything I want to be. And yes, I can actually play pretend and look like a princess, or a ballerina, or prom queen. Not that I would do that or anything.

I gently touched the center of my mother's amulet and imagined myself to be an Arctic wolf. I would need the coat for where I was going. After I changed, I grabbed a set of clothes to change into once I reached Alaska. Yep, I'm heading north. Charlie probably won't be home for Christmas... again... so I didn't have a reason to hang around and wait for him. I ran out through the back door and headed north.

It took me at least two days to run there, with no stops along the way. At times like this, I really enjoy being a demon because it would have taken a normal human more than two weeks to reach Denali. I set my spare clothes down on top of the snow and laid down in it. My mind drifted back to that case all those months ago... I was still a little angry because of the facts that I couldn't ignore.

A) Why would Hector be in Forks? I mean, if protection was what he really needed, why not send him to a private boarding school or something? They could watch their students more closely than public schools could.

And B) Why strangulation? I don't mean to make it sound like it's a better way to die, not at all. It's just too clean. No traces of footprints or fingerprints anywhere... well none that the humans saw. The scene screamed demon interference, but it didn't make sense. Not only does father keep a close eye on the borders of the two worlds, but demons are rather messy when it comes to kills.

I shook my head and tried to think about something else. I was about to drift to sleep when I heard something rustling in the trees behind me. I slowly rose out of the snow and looked around. My still brown eyes scanned the scene a bit lazily. I looked away from the rustling noises, only to hear a growl. I quickly turned back around...

only to meet the black, thirsty gaze of a vampire.

* * *

EPOV

Christmas time had come once more, and we all decided to take our own hunting trips. Alice and Jasper went east, into Africa actually, where the gazelle flocked. Carlisle and Esme went east too, but they went to England, mostly to visit Carlisle's old home. Rosalie and Emmett went north, up into Oregon, where the salmon runs were. Where there's salmon, there's bound to be bears for Emmett somewhere. I went farther north, into Alaska. I don't really know why I came here though. If I could have, I would have stayed in Forks with Bella. But, she hadn't been seen in two days. When Carlisle called him to voice my concern, he said that she was in Florida with her mother.

Anyway, as I ran through the frozen forests of Alaska, I came across a glorious scent... one that called to me more than any other kind of animal blood. I gave myself over to my instincts and followed the scent. It wove around the trees and through the snow, until it stopped in a clearing. I gazed around for the source of the smell, when I saw a lone wolf laying in the snow. I thought I was being completely silent when I moved towards it, but animals do have some sense that something dangerous is coming. The wolf looked around, brown eyes sleepily watching. I climbed up onto a rock, not really noticing the clothing that lay on it, and growled.

The wolf turned around and froze. It looked at me, then it looked back towards the forest, where it thought it could probably lose me in the trees. Then, it took off, faster than I've ever seen an animal move before. I chased it for what seemed like hours, amazed at the stamina the wolf possessed. My thirst eventually got the best of me, so I pounced on it. It yelped in surprise, but kept moving its head around, making it difficult to snap its neck. I bent down to bite when I heard something.

_Edward!! Stop!! Please!!_

I lifted my head back up and gazed at the wolf. "Did you just...?"

_Yes! Please let me go Edward!_

"How are you doing that?" I've heard the thoughts of animals before, but that doesn't mean I've been able to understand them.

_If you let me go, I promise to explain._

The idea that an animal could speak to me overwhelmed the thirst I felt and I nodded. Somehow, we had ended up back in the clearing we had started in. The wolf trotted over to the set of clothes sitting on the rock, and then disappeared into the forest. When it came back out, I was shocked. "Bella?!" Before me stood my best human friend, a shy smile on her face.

"Hi Edward."

What the hell is going on?

* * *

**I hope you liked that. I will be working every night on the next chapter. Please review and let me know what you thought of it!! Still don't own Twilight or Bones.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hello!! Sorry it's taken a while to get this out. My last chapter wasn't really that great and hopefully this one is better. Don't own Twilight or Bones(yes I know, I will get more creative as the story goes on).**

**

* * *

**

****

Chapter Five

EPOV

"Would you care to tell me what the hell is going on?"

"You certainly don't waste any time at all…don't beat around the bush much do you?"

She hid her gaze from me as I asked. She suddenly seemed interested in the rock, staring at it like she'd never seen one before.

"How quickly can you get back to Forks?"

I shrugged. We hadn't told her anything yet and I don't think we planned to any time soon. She never questioned our habits when she was over, though I know she noticed. But, there was never any question pertaining to our eating habits or our never ending energy at three in the morning. She trusted our judgment and opinions without a second thought.

It was unnerving and downright odd.

Rosalie, of course, mentioned this whenever we could and suggested that we stayed away from her. She didn't hate Bella… she just didn't want her life to change anymore than it needed to (which for her, was no change at all). But, she tolerated Bella because Emmett adored her so much and she made him happy.

Bella sighed.

She touched a small object resting on her chest and almost immediately turned back into the wolf I had been hunting. I rubbed my eyes a couple of times to be sure that I wasn't hallucinating. So much for those clothes she brought.

_Come on. I can get you back faster than you can._

I shook my head and took a step back, raising my hands to stop her if necessary. "You've really lost it Bella." She rolled her eyes. Before I could stop her, she charged at me then ducked, her body sliding along the snow, causing me to end up on her back (at least I think that's what happened). She shot off through the forest, leaving the clearing in the dust.

_Hang on tight!_

What? Her legs slowed for a second, before the muscles tightened and she jumped, throwing us into the air. I yelled in surprise as her thoughts giggled in glee at my reaction. As she danced along the treetops, my hands closed around the fur on her back, not only because I was afraid she would fall and hurt herself, but also because heights aren't my thing. I avoided the family trips where high places were involved.

_Afraid pretty boy?_

I growled at her as she laughed.

_Don't worry. I won't let you fall. Just find something to stare at and we'll be back before you know it._

I focused on the fur I held tightly. It was very smooth and soft, and it actually smelled amazing. Now that I was in control of my mind, I noticed that her scent hadn't changed at all. It was still the inviting and pleasing aroma of freesia and strawberries. So, she couldn't be a werewolf (or a shape shifter; whatever you want to call those filthy mutts.) But, I could clearly hear and feel her heart beating quickly beneath my fingertips, so vampire it out too. But then what is left? I felt her body fall, as she jumped down from the treetops.

_Off you go._

Again, her body slid flat along the dirt, depositing me back onto solid ground. How did she do that? She sank onto the ground, panting. "Bella?" She shook her head.

_Can you go get me either some of your or Alice's clothes? Mine are…well gone._

I nodded and began to run, at human pace, into the white mansion before me. I quickly grabbed one of my shirts and a pair of basketball shorts, hurrying back outside. I handed them over and she trotted into the forest, leaving me with my thoughts. What could she possibly be? I sat against a tree and closed my eyes as I thought, letting my mind wander through all the possibilities.

Maybe it was only my imagination. I mean, yes I did see her change from a human to a wolf, but even vampires lose their minds sometimes. I couldn't have almost killed my closest human friend…whom I had mistaken to be my prey. She was only in the right (or wrong) place at the right (or wrong) time…. Right? I groaned and shifted my head into my hands.

"You alright Edward?"

I lifted my head again to gaze at Bella. She normally looked amazing in anything she wore, but to see her in my clothes… no, she's only a friend. Nevertheless, I had to look away…I am not attracted to Bella in that way at all. Only a friend, nothing more.

"Yeah I'm fine. Are you going to explain everything to me know?"

It came out a little colder and harsher than I had intended, but she didn't seem to mind. Plus, I don't know about you, but I would personally really like to know why I almost killed one of my best friends.

"Is your family back yet? If I'm going to tell you everything, I'd rather only say it once."

I searched as far as I could for someone's mind, but I came up with nothing, even with Bella, though that was expected. I couldn't normally hear her anyway.

"No, they haven't returned yet." She sighed.

"Then we are going to wait."

I sighed in annoyance, but agreed. We began walking back towards the house, simply enjoying the fresh air. Well, I was trying to rid myself of any anger left over so I could more easily speak once my family arrived. And I was enjoying Bella's scent as well, but that's just me. We reached the house in silence and sat on the porch. She leaned up against the nearest post and closed her eyes, resting her hands behind her head.

I shouldn't have, but I allowed my eyes to wander over her beautiful figure. Her shimmering brown hair with the light red tint, her perfectly shaped nose, her full pink lips…. And then, I saw the necklace resting on her chest. It was an unusual stone, one I had never really seen before. It reminded me of some type of jade, but white jade was so rare… My hand stretched out to touch it, when someone jerked me out of my thoughts.

"What are you doing?"

I immediately dropped my hand and turned towards my family, all of whom had irritating smiles on their faces. I glared. "Nothing. We were waiting for you."

"What he means is that he almost killed me while he was on his 'camping' trip, and now he owes me an explanation." Bella had opened her eyes and was staring at me very seriously. I turned to her and glared again. "You mean you owe me an explanation. None of this would have happened if you hadn't been there." She rolled her eyes as I growled at her. Returning my glare, I could see no fear whatsoever in her eyes after I growled, almost as if she didn't notice it at all… or she didn't care.

"Oh, so it's my fault you nearly killed me because I was taking a little vacation in Alaska? Wow, that one's new. I've been blamed for a lot of things, but never the pure instinct to kill." I didn't realize it at the time, but the next words that came out of my mouth were the ones I would regret for many things to come. "If you hadn't been that stupid animal in the first place and you had stayed here where you belong…"

She tackled me to the ground, actually pinning me. I mean, I really couldn't move. Her lips grazed my ear as she snarled into it, "Don't you dare call my family's ability stupid. I don't go around calling your family's habits and abilities stupid, so lay off mine alright?"

She quickly rose and dashed away into the forest. Carlisle said that it was probably best if we stayed away from her for some time, long enough for her to both cool off and hopefully forget the whole matter. So, my conversation with her was the last time anyone in my family spoke to her that week. Something that I would regret.

BPOV

I know my anger with Edward was completely irrational, but that fact that I was accidentally blamed for the whole incident really ticked me off. It wasn't either of our faults… I mean we can't control what we are; we can only live with it. But it still made me angry. So, I avoided them. It hurt to ignore the Cullens, especially Edward, but perhaps it was better for the both of us if we stopped contacting each other. But it still hurt a lot. Instead, I hung around the kids that considered themselves my friends. I did my best to enjoy myself, but I couldn't relate to kids like Mike and Jessica as well as Edward and Alice.

The week passed just like that. But, Friday was different, not that I noticed at the time. I walked by the Cullens table at lunch, barely looking as I continued to my 'new' table, as usual. Mike and Jessica were sitting together (because Jessica is so subtle about her life), it came as no surprise since they were dating. Ben and Angela were as well, and they were the ones I felt most comfortable with. We were sitting at the table together, when Mike got up for some reason, spilling his drink everywhere….

I woke up in the middle of a bathroom floor. My head hurt like crazy and I could feel blood slowly running down my arms. I could smell the rusty scent everywhere as I stumbled around to actually stand. I gripped onto the closest thing I could and hauled myself off the ground. Of course, I had managed to grip the sink… which led to the mirror….which led to me running out the door. I raced down the stairs and out into the street. Cars honked and swerved as I ran out onto the highway, heading towards…anywhere but there. I heard someone yelling at me to first, get out of the street, and second, get to the hospital.

I had to stop running after about fifteen minutes. Normally, I would have kept going, kept pushing my leg, but with the laceration on it….a normal human would barely be able to walk without limping and let's just forget about running. I just kept walking until I found something that looked familiar. As odd as this sounds, I found a dead tree that I recognized. I headed into the forest and tried running again. I finally came upon the house I needed to reach. I threw open the front door and walked into the living room. Charlie was sitting on the couch, his eyes red and puffy from tears and his face wrinkled in worry.

"Oh god Bella!"

He rushed up to me faster than I've ever seen a cop move and gathered me in a hug. Tears streamed down his face as he clutched me against his chest, rather tightly might I add. I heard cars pulling up into the driveway. "We're sorry Chief but there's no… Bella!" Five or six other officers came in and joined in our hug. I just kinda stood in the middle, a bit awkwardly. I hadn't been gone that long had I? Charlie knew that I didn't always come home for various reasons and it never really worried him, at least not after the first time. "Chief uh… I'm kinda beat up…"

He immediately released me, afraid he was hurting me in some way. "Bella, where have you been? What happened?" I was about to answer, when my mind came up blank. At this point, the Cullens ran inside, only to stop at the front door. Only Carlisle continued forward. All the others were frozen, probably by the smell of my blood. As much as I hate doing it, I needed to open my mind to Edward.

_Edward, get your family out._

He looked at me in shock. Clearly, he couldn't read my mind on a normal day (yes I do know that). If any one of them slipped...I shudder to think of what would happen. Though my blood appeared human, it was demon inside and out. One tiny sip from me, and there's no stopping the lust. Not only will I be dead, but whatever vampire gets the taste.... they won't stop until there's nothing left.... of not only the unfortunate demon, but of the demon world itself. Luckily, any case in which that happened, the vampire exposed themselves before they could find my home.

Anyway, Edward was about to open his mouth when I cut him off. _Just shut up and listen. _His mouth audibly snapped shut. _Go, it's alright. _ He led his family out of the house surprisingly with no argument on his part. I jumped up onto the counter as Carlisle pulled out his medical kit and began cleaning my wounds. Edward came back in ten minutes later, much to my surprise.

"Edward, you shouldn't be here." He shook his head.

"Bella.. do you have any idea how worried we were?" I raised my eyebrow in confusion.

"Why? I was only gone for one night. Charlie's used to that." His eyes widened in shock, then he shook his head for some reason. A sudden knock on the door brought me to attention. It was Mrs. Newton. Her gaze immediately fixed on me. "You! Where is my son? What have you done with him?" I glanced at Edward. "I haven't seen Mike since yesterday Mrs. Newton."

She screamed, "YOU DO KNOW WHAT HAPPENED TO HIM! MY SON'S BEEN MISSING SINCE FRIDAY, WHEN YOU WERE LAST SEEN WITH HIM! WHERE IS MY BABY BOY!?!" Friday? "Wait, he's been missing since yesterday?" She grabbed my shirt and pushed me off the counter, into Edward's waiting arms. His arms formed a protective cage around me, his body shielding mine from anything and everything. "Today is Monday you idiot!"

Monday....I turned to Edward, "Today's Monday?" He nodded. "What happened to Saturday and Sunday?" He said nothing, only pulled me closer as I froze. Charlie touched my shoulder. "Bella, I need to know what happened." I took a deep breath and racked my brain for anything that could help. But I really couldn't remember. "I honestly don't know. The last thing I remember is Mike spilling his drink... then nothing." And that was almost three days ago. I clung closer to Edward as Mrs. Newton continued yelling, but she was the last thing I was concerned about.

Where was Mike?

* * *

I hope you all liked that. Yes I know, I am incredibly obsessed with the show Bones and I am not at all ashamed to admit it. There is a pattern that I am going to show in the next chapter. If you can figure it out, let me know ^_^. Please review. I've been rather bored at 1 in the morning so I will probably be writing. 


	6. Chapter 6

****

**Finally I get another chapter posted! I've been swamped in school junk and I know, I'm whining. Well I can't help it :). Anyway, please vote in my poll and enjoy chapter 6 of Reaching for Heaven!**

Chapter Six

BPOV

If you think that day was hell, just wait. That night was a living nightmare. But I'll get to that later. After Mrs. Newton left with that famous line of "I'll make you pay for this," Charlie forced me to go to the hospital so Carlisle could examine my wounds. Something about me felt different somehow because when he put on the disinfectant: it didn't burn or itch like I had expected it too, like it normally would. And some of these cuts were not minor.

Of course, I thought nothing of it.

"Well, you appear to be just fine Bella. Just cuts, the deeper ones have been cleaned and wrapped, and a minor concussion. There's no sign of intercourse by either consent or rape. The only truly bad cut you have is the one on your leg. You need to keep that one wrapped for at least a couple of weeks to prevent any infection. Re-bandage it at least twice a day." He gently laid his hand on my shoulder, "And please don't do that again. You had us all very worried."

After the hospital, Charlie tried to convince me to stay at home to rest, but I vehemently refused. I went to school, rather late I might add. I imagine I looked like crap because not only was my leg completely wrapped in bandages, but I had nicks all over my body. Oh, did I mention Carlisle forced me to use crutches? Again, something about me felt different, normal almost. But I couldn't worry myself with something my mind is making my body create.

I first went to Principal Casper. "Oh Bella. What on earth happened to you?" I set my bag down in one of his chairs and began pulling out random files that I hadn't completely my post-case work for. I had at least 10 I needed to go through, but I set them on one of his open tables for now. "Bella? Is something wrong?" I walked back over to his file cabinet and searched for Mike's file. I sighed as I pulled it out.

"Mike's missing sir. Apparently he and I were last seen together on Friday afternoon, but I don't remember. I remember him spilling a drink at lunch on Friday, and then I remember waking up in some random apartment really early this morning. Other than that… nothing."

He agreed to let me skip all my classes today to first ask some of his friends if they knew anything, and then try to lead my father to the apartment I had woken up in. Sounds like fun right?

You cannot imagine the joy running through my veins as I think about this.

No one was really any help. Jessica said that Mike and I had gone on a only friend based date, just the two of us, which couldn't have happened because there's no way I would ever give him a chance, no offense towards Mike intended. I knew he wanted more than I would ever consider giving him. He's nice and all, but just not my type. Tyler said that he, Mike, Angela, and I had all gone to a movie, and then we went back in separate cars. Angela said the same. Obviously, I was getting nowhere.

I can't honestly describe how I was feeling. It was like everything was falling apart at once. I mean honestly, what are the odds that a human is beind both Hector Raven's and Mike Newton's case? Humans leave behind marks or follow patterns, whether its something like touching something and leaving behind traces of blood on accident or going after a particular gender, race, age.... but there's been nothing. Of course, the mothers' blame everything on me, saying that if I would act my age and be a teenager, their sons wouldn't be dead. I had to resist laughing because unfortunately...

They were right.

Why did I have to be so odd?

I walked (more like hobbled) into the cafeteria and sat down at the table furthest from the entrance, in the corner. I rested my elbows on the table and placed my head in my hands.

Why couldn't I remember anything? I mean honestly, I could describe to anyone in detail what the color, shade, and curve of one piece of hair that was on the Greek champion Achilles' head, but I couldn't tell you what happened two days ago. And that was as old, if not a bit older, than I am. For once in my life, I was at a dead end. I reached up to my mother's pendent, to find some reassurance that I hadn't failed my family.

It wasn't there.

My day just keeps getting better doesn't it?

Jazz POV

_Good Lord Edward, calm down. I can feel your anger all the way over here._

He glared at me as I thought this and shook his head. Idiot. If he would only calm down, we may be able to find something. After Carlisle took Bella to the hospital, Edward enlisted us all to find her trail and try to find wherever she had been over the weekend. So far, we haven't found much. We found a scent, but it somehow changed from Bella's freesia and strawberry scent, into a lavender scent. So we started over….and over…. and over…

And now Eddie was getting annoyed.

"Annoyed is an understatement Jasper." I tried to send him some waves of calmness, but he brushed them away. "Honestly Edward, why do you care so much? She's only human!" Of course Rosalie couldn't tell. Probably no one except Alice and I really knew. Edward wouldn't admit it to himself because of his self-loathing problems. He adored Bella. No that's not right… he didn't just adore her...

He was head over heels in love with her.

"I am not! She is the closest friend I've had in over a century who isn't like us." I sighed. "Exactly! She's not like us! So why do we care?"

"Rose..." She turned on me.

"Do not Rose me Jasper. Edward is going to ruin us all by hanging around that freak." We all growled at her, even Emmett. The look she gave him was full of anger, disbelief, and betrayal. He sighed and pulled her into a hug.

"She's not a freak Rosalie. She's a brilliant, bright, and beautiful girl. Yes, she interests me because I can't read her mind except for those two times. But, it goes much deeper than that. I can talk to her about things that I could never talk to you about because you're too busy admiring yourself. At least she cares about someone other than herself." Rosalie glared at Edward but said nothing more. She tore herself out of Emmett's grasp and ran in the direction of home.

We left as well shortly after. Alice wanted to go see Bella, who was crazy enough to go to school. Edward, of course, was going to drag Bella back home so she could get the rest her body needed. It was fifth period when we got there. Edward smoothly won over the secretary as he told some extravagant lie about his car having broken down last night and how we had to wait at the hospital until our father was done with his first round of patients…. Blah blah blah. As soon as he was done though, he shoved us out the door without a second glance. "Does that woman realize that she is wearing a wedding band?" Edward placed his thumb and forefinger on his nose as he tried to get some mental picture out of his head... one I'm really glad I never have to see.

"If you don't mind, I'd really not remember that I'm the only one that can see it. And stop thinking of my sister that way!" Poor Eddie.

As we walked down the halls of the school to find Bella, the doors to the cafeteria burst open, with Bella frantically running out. Edward sped up and lightly grabbed her, increasing his grip as she struggled.

"Please! Let me go! I have to find it before it's too late!"

EPOV

I stared at Bella as she fought against me. Something about her did seem different. Before I could figure it out, she actually squirmed her way out of my arms and flew down the hall. Alice, Jasper, and I took off after her. She headed into the forest, weaving her way through the trees without stumbling once. We followed her for at least 20 minutes before we came upon an apartment complex. As we got closer, a very stale but strong scent made my stomach heave (for once in my life). Blood... and from the smell, lots of it. Jasper had to stop since the smell was too much for him.

"Call Chief Swan and tell him where we are." He nodded and quickly changed his direction, heading towards the nearest pay phone. Alice and I continued, following Bella into one of the rooms. She ran up a flight of stairs and threw open the door. We quietly stepped in behind her, trying to stay out of her sight. She was frantically searching through every nook and cranny the room provided before pausing for a moment. She walked down a short hallway before stopping at a door. Alice decided to leave and find Jasper as I continued to follow her. Something did not feel right. Bella very gently pushed open the door and immediately froze. "Bella?" She didn't look towards me as I stepped into the room as well.

What I saw nearly made me hurl.

Someone had been crucified on the wall... and from the smell, he had been like that for at least two days. Blood was smeared all over the walls. The person's hands and feet had been nailed, a bunch of thorns had been crushed onto his head. And the worst part was.... "Bella! Jasper Hale called, said you'd found the place where... oh god...." Charlie fiercely pulled Bella into his chest, hiding her eyes from the sight. She hadn't spoken a work nor made any kind of movement since she had opened the door. Something on the ground caught my attention and I picked it up before anyone else noticed it. Many more policemen arrived moments later. After having another person look at the body... my thought was confirmed.

"Edward, get Bella out of here." Charlie shoved her into my arms and out the door before I could say anything... not that I would have said anything. I tried to get her to move, but I think she was still in shock. So, I picked her up and began running, at human pace, back towards my house. Ok well, I may have gone at little faster since it only took me half the time to get back, but that's not the point. I set her on the couch in the living room when everyone joined me. Jasper had told them all and Alice had seen everything. What she didn't see though, was the events that would happen in a matter of moments.

Bella cried out and grabbed her head. Her eyes became unfocused, like Alice's do when she's having a vision. Her hands were shaking as she failed to keep a tight grip on her head. I tried to help by placing my hands on her head, to calm her, but as soon as I touched her, my hand felt like it had been burned off. Something wasn't right. Ignoring the intense heat coming off her, I wrapped my arms around her and tried to ease her pain, by simply being there.

BPOV

Pain erupted from my head as I felt my body changing again. Without the pendent, my demon form is the only side I can show. The pendent merely creates a very easy to change and get into costume. Though it does more than cover up what I am, it still works the same way. With it, I can change my appearance with almost no pain at all. Without it.... the pain would make the change into a vampire seem like a walk in the park. And at the moment, I didn't have it.

I saw my entire life passing before my eyes. Mother, father, the castle, the Underworld.... Charlie and Renee Swan, the 13 years I spent with Renee, the 4 I've had with Charlie, the Cullens, the Civil War. I know, I wasn't really there for the Civil War, I was stuck in hell. But, for demons, watching Earth is like watching TV... only we can't change the channel. Sure, we can bounce from nation to nation, but no futuristic sci fi shows for me as a kid.

I felt my ears growing and becoming pointed again. My nails were growing out again and getting very sharp. My teeth filed themselves down until they were, literally, jaws of death (and vampires think they have a tight grip). I could feel my tail beginning to come out.... oh man that'll be fun explaining. I opened my eyes to see Edward staring at me with extreme worry, concern, and something I couldn't identify. He wrapped his strong arms around my shoulders and just held me. I'm not going to lie, it made my day. But, even if he could accept me for what I was, he could never feel the way I feel about him.... he could never love a real monster.

After about 3 hours of that, I opened my eyes again to see the Cullens staring at me in wonder.

"What? Never seen a true demon before?"

* * *

Well, what did you think? I've been waiting for this to happen so now more detailed chapters of what Bella did both before she went to Earth and while she was on Earth will happen. And let's not forget the future relationship!!


	7. Chapter 7

**I am awful at keeping promises so I'm not going to make anymore. ^_^. But I will do my best to keep things coming. I really hated how my last attempt at this chapter went so I'm changing it. Please review and enjoy the new chapter 7!**

* * *

Chapter Seven

BPOV

I slowly rose from the couch. The Cullens were not looking at me with fear... well maybe a little, but otherwise it was shock and curiosity that covered their eyes. I walked over to the mirror hanging on the wall, keeping my eyes locked on the Cullens. I broke the staring contest we were having to look at myself in the mirror. Sure enough, my elf-like ears were back as were my beautiful silver eyes. I sighed, "I look like a cat...." Emmett burst out laughing, followed by chuckles coming from Edward and Jasper, effectively ending the awkward silence. "You kinda do... like that cat anime thing?" I rolled my eyes, "I'd rather be that than a dog anyway." Edward chuckled again.

Then, out of nowhere, Rosalie came crashing into me, pinning me to the ground, her hands digging into my shoulders and her knees nearly breaking mine. "I do not care what you are. Get out. You are a danger to my family. You always have been and you always will be! Now LEAVE!" She raised one of her hands to scratch me across the face. I could not let my blood fall onto her fingers... then we'd be in even more trouble. So, I raised the arm she had set free and cut across her face. She snarled in response and shoved my hand back down.

But the damage had been done.

Her clear colored venom dripped out of the cut and onto my cheek. I froze as I felt it sliding down onto the carpet. I had never actually smelled vampire venom before... My eyes widened and my breathing sped up.

"What? Cat got your tongue?"

"Rose... cut it out. Something's not right." She turned her head from me... before I could stop myself, I flipped her over so she was pinned beneath me. I lowered my head to her cheek, already tasting her venom on my tongue.

I threw myself across the room, impaling the wall with my nails. Edward immediately rose and tried to come to me. "Do not move." He slowly sat down in the chair closest to him. I took a couple of deep breaths before I dared to open my eyes again. Rosalie was now next to Emmett's side who was in a protective stance.

"I apologize for that. I did not mean to frighten you." Emmett relaxed a little, but his gaze was still wary. "But to make things easier," I took a step towards them, and was met with a growl. I raised my hands, "I promise I mean no harm. I don't even have to touch you." I took one more step and waved my hand in the general direction of her cheek. It immediately healed.

I smiled, "There. Now we can avoid any possibility of temptation." Rosalie touched her cheek gently, probably confused as to why I would heal it. "It wouldn't have healed at the same pace. Something about my own venom..." I shrugged. "But you know... that did taste awfully good..."

EPOV

She lunged at Rosalie, ravenous hunger clear in her eyes. I shut my own as I leapt forward, to protect my Bella from herself... wait... my Bella? I heard a scream and multiple shouts....

My eyes shot open.

I was in the living room, laying on the couch, with my head in Bella's lap. She was gently stroking the top of my head, smoothing out my hair, humming to herself. My eyes darted around the room as I saw my family in similar positions, only neither partner was... awake? But we can't sleep.... "Glad to see at least one of you is finally awake." My eyes turned back to Bella, who was smiling at me with amusement... and her hand had stopped moving.

"I was asleep?"

"More of passed out, but basically yes. How do you feel?" I spoke before I could think through what I wanted to say.

"I'd feel better if your hand would keep moving if you don't mind." My eyes widened and I looked away in embarrassment. She laughed her beautiful bell-like laugh and began raking her fingers through my hair again. I didn't know we could do this, but apparently...

"Are you purring?" I gave her a sheepish smile.

"I was unaware that humans could purr." Humans... oh, we hadn't told her. I'll tell her when everyone wakes up. In the meantime, I closed my eyes again as she restarted her humming. About ten minutes later, I heard a groan from Emmett.

"Ugh.... I feel like I got hit by a truck." Such an Emmett response.

"What happened?" Carlisle must have woken as well.

"I'm afraid that's my fault. Sometimes in extremely tense or, I suppose, high intensity moments, my abilities go into overdrive and because of that, any individual, regardless of whether or not he or she is a friend, they're incapacitated for a short time. That's what happened to you."

"So you attacking me.... that really happened?" Sounds like Rose is awake too. I figured it would be a good idea to open my eyes eventually, but I was rather comfortable. "The cut cheek and wall destruction... yes that did. I was unaware that I attacked you a second time. I apologize if I did. Sometimes I don't recall the things I have done."

"You planning on moving anytime Ed?" Damn it.... they knew.

"You're not the greatest at being subtle brother. We could hear you purring or whatever the hell you were doing." I opened one eye and glared in Emmett's direction. "Oh sorry I didn't notice. You're all cozy with your little girlfriend... my bad." If I could have blushed I would have. Did he have to tell her about my feelings towards her? Then again, he is my brother... so I suppose it's his job.

Everyone laughed at my expense, of course. Everyone except Bella that is. At first she smiled (did I imagine it or was it sadly?), then looked out the window, staring off into the woods. "Edward, would you please get up?" I was a little surprised to hear her ask. Was my family making her that uncomfortable? Was I making her uncomfortable? She seemed to notice my distress and softly touched my cheek. "Something doesn't feel right. Don't worry, I'm sure it's really nothing."

She quickly stood and hurried outside; we stood from the porch, curious. She stood in the clearing in front of the house, just standing there. Suddenly, a loud rumble was heard. Not the kind you hear when thunder sounds, but when something big is coming. Birds were fleeing from their tree tops and animals came running out of the forest as well. All the smaller animals ran up and over Bella when she didn't move, too scared to worry about her.

Everything fell silent for a moment.....

Then, out of nowhere this..... thing came flying out of the forest. All the trees it passed died as its skin sucked the life out of them. Worm like creatures seemed to move underneath the skin of the creature... on top of it as well (**Think Princess Mononoke demons). ** "What is it you seek?" Bella hadn't moved from her position. All this thing did was roar in her face, practically pouring blood all over her. "You can't even speak now? What has our world come to?" It began to charge her.... and she wasn't moving.... why wasn't she moving?! I took half a step towards her. "Do NOT move. If it sees you, it'll be even harder to stop. Just stay there and be silent."

But it was too late.

The creature turned to look at us, unnaturally bright red-orange eyes looking at us. Its face broke into a very disturbing and evil smile as its course changed towards us. "No!" Bella appeared in front of us, bow and arrow in hand. She shot one arrow in its eye, and it screamed in pain, shooting out its worm-like friends. Bella shoved my family inside and grabbed me around the waist. "Hold on." I felt her legs bend and extend as she threw us into the air. "Whatever you do, don't let it touch you. That creature is cursed, no longer worthy of being called a demon." We landed in a tree, one that hadn't died yet.

"Stay here."

CPOV

I watched in horror as my son and almost daughter escaped this creature. I know I sound like a geek or whatever, but something was going to happen and it wasn't going to be good. I dashed down into the storeroom and, geek moment, pulled out the "Holy water" I had received from my father. But when I got back, I was too late. Bella had shot the creature's eye again, but not before its own power managed to grab ahold of her arm. Her arm had turned red and a very strange pattern appeared. "Move away Edward!" I pushed Edward away from Bella and handed her the water.

"Holy water? Really Carlisle? You of all people?" She shook her head as she opened the bottle and poured it over her arm. Smoke arose from the mark... what?

"My body temperature is higher than the temperature of the water, obviously."

"What was that?" Bella's eyes darkened at Jasper's question. Her eyes turned away from us to the now pile of bones and ash that lay in the grass.

"It was a demon at one point... a demon like me."

* * *

There... that was a little better. Hopefully you thought so too!


	8. Chapter 8

**Ok well I know that the last chapter wasn't fabulous, but I like receiving flames that tell me so. Don't be afraid to hurt my feelings if you really don't like something or if you think something should happen differently. And of course I like reviews that say you liked it. I know that sometimes you really don't feel like leaving a review (I personally don't sometimes, even though I should) a review every now and then is nice (I'm sure you know) Anyway, my rant is over and I hope you enjoy chapter 8!**

Chapter Eight

EPOV

I stood by her side as she moved closer to the bones. She gingerly picked one up, only to have it crumble into dust in her hands. She scoffed, "I should have known." Her fingers lightly touched the bones that remained, leaving no evidence that something had happened. She turned back to us. "Could I possibly use some bandages for this? I really don't want to stare at it for the rest of my life."

I took the hand that was not covered in her new scar and led her inside, up to Carlisle's office. As she sat on Carlisle's desk, I pulled out the first aid kit he'd left in there and began treating her wound. "Be careful Edward. Don't touch it for too long." The mark was interesting, somewhat frightening. It created a star like pattern across part of her arm and onto her hand. As my ice cold hands glided across her arm, I could feel an intense heat rising up from the mark.

"Bella, will you please explain what happened?" She sighed. "In the demon world, there has been a war happening for as long as I can remember. There are normally two sections of hell, one for humans and one for demons like me."

"What about us?" I froze. Either Emmett was going to sound really stupid, or he just accidentally told her our secret. Rosalie noticed this too and slapped the back of his head. "You idiot, she just said humans have their own section." Bella laughed… such a beautiful, ringing laugh.

"Well, because you're vampires, you wouldn't end up in my world."

Everyone except Emmett gasped. How did she…? "So, if we were to all die in some freak accident within the next 5 minutes, we wouldn't end up in the same place as you?"

She shook her head, "You all have a soul, one that keeps you connected to not only the human world, but the world of paradise that you will encounter at the end of your existence, whether it is within the next 5 minutes or as the end of eternity. We would probably only see one another from a distance, but we would be unable to speak or touch one another." I felt a sharp jolt in my chest. Unable to speak or touch her? What kind of heaven would that be?

Heaven wouldn't be heaven unless I had Bella with me.

"Wait, how did you know what we are?" She smiled. "I met Carlisle, Rosalie, Esme, and Edward over 70 years ago…. when you all first encountered the shape-shifters. It was a very interesting and short meeting." Rosalie laughed.

"Oh yeah! It mostly consisted of Bella kicking some mutt's butt and capturing Edward's full attention." She smirked at me as she spoke. I ignored the embarrassment that grew and finished with Bella's wound. I placed all the tools away and returned the kit to its place in the office.

Did Rose really need to make it that obvious that I was completely captivated by Bella? She surprised me every time I had the honor of spending time with her, always catching me off guard with her delicate movements and her witty comments. I could always feel my world brighten up and become happy and carefree. I smiled at the thought.

"Uhh Edward? Hello? You still with us?" Alice was snapping her fingers in front of me, a knowing look on her smug little pixie face. I narrowed my eyes at her.

"Edward! Alice! Stop it. Bella would you like to move to the living room where you would be more comfortable? Perhaps you could finish your story, only if you wish." Bella smiled brightly at Esme. She leapt down from the desk, grabbed Esme's hand with her good one, and together they proceeded down the stairs. The rest of us followed behind, quietly listening to Esme's excitement over having someone who shared her same passion for decoration and building.

BPOV

Esme was like my own mother in so many ways. If they ever met, they would probably become fast friends. I smiled as Esme began telling me about this old house she had found in Europe somewhere and was planning a trip to go and begin redecorating it. "What was your house like?" I closed my eyes as I remembered my home. "It was quite like this one. Very open, very familiar. It was a lot like this one. No reason to hide anything, neither our problems nor our looks." I sighed.

"Anyway, as I was saying earlier," I sat on the same couch as Edward, "there has been a war going on in my world for as long as I can remember, maybe even longer. That monster that attacked earlier is the effect the war has had on many demons. Eventually, they forget who they really are, and remember nothing of their lives before the war and what it was like to be normal." I felt Edward's arm around my shoulders as I did my best to not cry. It was supposed to be my duty to end the war... to marry the enemy... but my selfishness probably destroyed my life. But, it led me to Edward...

I sighed. "The rest is as every other war goes. It drags on and on until it gets boring. Unfortunately for this particular one, it seems that neither side can see enough humans and possessed demons kill each other... their own brothers and sisters... God, it's disgusting. I'm sure you understand Jasper." Jasper nodded and spread a wave of calm through the room.

I felt that I really couldn't say much more than that, simply because it was not the time to tell such things. But perhaps, a bit more wouldn't hurt to tell. "So, please don't take this the wrong way or anything Bella, but how old are you?" I burst out laughing.

"Emmett, let's put it this way. If I were to date any of you, including Carlisle, my demon friends would consider me to be equal to a child molester... or at least very close to one." Emmett burst out into laughter, as did everyone else. "Ok, but seriously, how old are you?" I smiled. "Mmmm... well, much older than seventeen. Oh, I suppose my 3018 birthday is rapidly approaching." Emmett's eyes widened. He turned to Edward, "Dude, she's got so much experience on you. Why didn't you tell us you liked older women? What, was Tanya too young for you?" Edward growled.

"Oh hush Emmett. You enjoy older women too if I remember correctly." He quieted down a bit after that, though occasional chuckles still escaped.

They asked me many questions about my life and the things I had seen. I left out the whole heir to the royal throne part, but otherwise I hid almost nothing from them. In turn, they did the same. If they hid something, it was their choice. They didn't press me, and I didn't press them. This continued for several hours, or at least it felt like it did. Suddenly, I nearly gasped in pain as the curse mark that covered my arm reacted with my body. Edward tightened the grip he had placed on my shoulders, providing me with both a form of protection from myself and as something that I could grip onto if need be.

I tried to take some deep breaths as the pounding in my body slowed and finally stopped. "Bella?"

I sighed. "The blood from that monster doesn't mix with my blood very well. Eventually, it will tear what's left of my body and destroy me..." What a fate to look forward to. "What? No, there has to be someway to stop it. Or wait, can you even die?"

I explained that demons can die, and if they do in hell, then nothing really happens. We just vanish for a short time. But if we die on Earth, we are send to the edge of our world, and we are forced to work for at least 1000 years before we are allowed to even return to the city, let alone Earth.

"Well there has to be someway to get this off you isn't there?" Edward's eyes were begging me to say yes. And I could.

"There is, but in order to do it, I'd have to go home. And I'd rather die here than go back there."


	9. Chapter 9

****

Don't own Twilight or any of the characters.

* * *

****

Chapter Nine

EPOV

No… please no. There has to be some way... If she died, I wouldn't be far behind her. I hate to say this, but I'd kill thousands of humans if it would put me in hell with her. I still think that I'll end up there, but just to be extra sure.

"But Bella, why wouldn't you want to go home? I mean you've been away for quite some time now haven't you? Don't you miss your parents and your old life at all?" Bella turned her gaze away from Esme towards the window, trying to hide her anger.

Was her life really that bad before coming here?

"I'm not going to lie to you Esme. Do I miss my parents? I miss my father and I miss the arguments we had. He and I were known for our tempers, even though we were both quiet at home. I miss my mother's excitement at the smallest things and her joy at simply existing. But, I can't go back. There was just too much pressure on me and I wasn't, heck I'm still not, ready to handle it. I'm still just a teenager in the demon world, and a teenager can't be expected to do everything that was expected of me."

I took one of her small, warm hands and covered it with my own. She smiled at the gesture, her silver eyes sparkling. As I stared into her eyes, I lost all sense of time. No one else mattered; she was the one I wanted, no matter what the cost was. If there were chances of her killing me, fine I'd take them. I loved her, and I had been waiting for her.

Carlisle cleared his throat, attempting to remind me that Bella and I were not alone. "Bella, would you mind if I took a look at your arm?" Bella laughed, "I should have expected you to ask. Since you are a doctor, you may. But be careful. I have only seen this mark once. I do not know everything about it myself."

She held out her arm to him while he unwrapped it; I still held the other. The mark had grown larger. The star burned into the back of her hand consisted of two triangles, one placed on top of the other and inverted. I tried to hold back a chuckle.

"You can laugh. It is rather ironic," Bella giggled. Carlisle lightly touched the center with a probe, and the area grew red. Bella's muscles tightened and she held her breath as Alice slowly poured water over it. The mark hissed once more as the ice cold water flowed over it. Bella still hadn't taken a breath. I leaned over to her ear, taking in her hypnotizing scent, and whispered, "Breathe Bella." She drew in a ragged breath and relaxed.

After that, Carlisle re-wrapped her arm, covering it better than I had. She and I were the only ones that remained on the couch after Alice and Jasper left. They had all turned in for the night. Bella had pulled her legs underneath her and rested her head on my shoulder. My arm found its ways around her shoulders and pulled her closer to me. I sat there, really just watching her. She closed her eyes and placed her face up against my chest. I chuckled as I heard her breathe in my scent, as if memorizing it. She reopened her eyes and smiled at me.

"You just smell so good. I apologize if I disturbed you." I smiled widely at her speech pattern. I couldn't really speak with anyone naturally. But now that I knew Bella could, I let the words flow out of my mouth.

"No apology is needed, but I accept. Your smell is just as, if not more, divine." She rolled her eyes and smiled. We returned to our peaceful silence again, just enjoying the night (well, she may have been. I enjoyed the opportunity to hold her in my arms). I closed my eyes and rested my head against hers, which had returned to my shoulder.

"Edward?"

"Yes?"

"Would you like to play a game?" I opened my eyes and looked at her incredulously. She never stopped surprising me. It was a nice change from knowing what others were thinking.

"That would depend on the game." She smiled and leaned up so her mouth was near my ear. She quietly whispered, "The game that never happened." I rose my eyebrow.

"I'm afraid I do not know that game. How do you play?" She pulled away from me and sat up straight. She laughed at my (seriously) curious face. I really did not know this game. Alice had made us play all kinds of ridiculous and stupid games whenever she was bored.

Bella leaned closer to me. "Edward…" She took my face in her hands. She waited for my reaction. I gave her my lopsided smile to ensure her that I was really curious as to what this game was. Her face came closer to mine, and she rested her forehead against mine, "This never happened," she whispered.

What happened next…. well never happened. Her lips gently touched mine, as if waiting for me to reject them. I wrapped my arms around her waist and pulled her to me, eagerly kissing her back. She smiled as she moved her hands from my face to my neck, slowly moving up into my hair. The warmth from her lips made my whole body shake. I had not felt this alive in over 100 years. I could have sworn that my heart started beating again.

A sudden knock on the door caused her to pull away from me and return to our previous position, which saddened me. Alice and Jasper came down, followed by Carlisle and Esme. Alice looked at us and smiled. Oh no… please don't tell me she'd seen….

_Aww don't you two look cute! When are you going to kiss her?_

I stared at her. I searched through her mind, trying to find the vision of Bella and me kissing. I nearly shouted in glee when I realized that she hadn't seen it. I looked towards Bella, who had closed her eyes and pretended to be sleeping…. though it wasn't very convincing with the smile she had on her face.

"Hello, is this the Cullen residence?" I listened as a police officer greeted Carlisle. "I'm Officer Daniel. I have been sent here by the Forks Police Department to collect a Ms. Bella Swan. I was told this is where I could find her." Carlisle was a bit reluctant to let him in, especially because Mrs. Newton came storming in after him.

"Where is that stupid little girl? She'll pay for murdering my son, I swear. I won't rest until she's either behind bars for life or dead…"

I quickly shifted Bella's and my position so we were laying on the couch, my arms wrapped tightly around her, silently promising to never let her go. I felt something wet beginning to gather on my chest and when I looked down, my heart nearly tore at the sight.

My poor, beautiful Bella was crying. Tears glistened in her eyes as she frantically tried to escape. She was still in her natural form. I began humming a tune for her and reached into my pocket, pulling out her necklace. As I continued the lullaby-like melody, she calmed down enough for me to slip her necklace over her head. Almost immediately after it touched her neck, her ears disappeared as did her tail. Her nails shrunk back down and her teeth softened. And, to my despair, her gorgeous silver eyes returned to their deep, never-ending brown. **If I had to choose a color, I don't think I could. Both just screamed Bella.**

I heard them coming into the living room and faked sleep; Bella did too. Esme gently shook us 'awake'. "Bella, sweetie, there's someone here to see you." Bella turned her gaze towards Esme, her eyes still wet from crying. "Bella?" She shook her head and pulled herself out of my grasp. My heart cried out as it realized that I had already broken my promise.

"Ms. Swan, I am sorry, but I'm placing you under arrest for the murders of both Hector Raven and Michael Newton. Anything you say can and will be used against you in the court of law…"

Arrested?! Is this man mad? "You can't arrest her? Do you honestly think that she could have killed anyone? Do you not know her?" Mrs. Newton glared at me. "You know, I always wondered why this child was so insistent on working with both my son's and Mrs. Raven's son's case. Then, I figured it out. It was so no one else would be able to find out that she did it! She killed both of those handsome young men." (Mike was anything but handsome…)

Even as the handcuffs were placed around Bella's delicate wrists, her composure never faltered. "Mrs. Newton, I took those cases because Mike was my friend and Hector was my classmate. I did not know Hector as well as I knew Mike, but that gives me no reason to kill him. I want to know as badly as you do what happened that weekend. I have been unable to examine your son's remains and run the normal tests to uncover what happened. If you will allow it I will...." Mrs. Newton shook her head.

"No! You've done enough to this town. You've ruined everything that was once peaceful. We all wish you had stayed in Arizona with your flighty, cheating mother!" Bella gave her the coldest glare I've ever seen.... and Rosalie can give some pretty nasty glares. "Never speak about my mother in that tone ever again. Understood?" Her voice was filled with venom. Mrs. Newton gasped at her voice and shakily nodded.

"Dan! What are you doing? Release my daughter at once!" Charlie pulled into the driveway just in time to see this exchange. Daniel sighed as he removed the handcuffs from Bella's wrists. "Now, Mrs. Newton. I understand that you're upset. I would be too if I were in your position. But taking your anger and grief out on Bella isn't going to help anyone. You and I both know that she is probably the only one who can really find out what happened to Mike. Arresting her will not do anyone any good." Mrs. Newton nodded, tears filling her eyes again. "Come on, let's get you home. Carlisle, is it alright if Bella stays with you all tonight? I have to work at the station for a while and I don't want her at home alone."

Alice smiled at Charlie, "Of course she can! You know we always love it when Bella's over!" She bounded up to Charlie and hugged him around his waist. He blushed a little and waved goodbye. Bella and I returned to our position on the couch as all the excitement died down. She sighed into my chest, "I really should be working right now... but this is too comfortable." I smiled. I couldn't wait for the day when I would tell her that I loved her, and hopefully she felt the same towards me. She leaned up and kissed me once more...

But then again.... That never happened now did it?

* * *

Can anyone tell me what the mark on Bella's arm is??? If you can... maybe I'll update faster!! :)


	10. Chapter 10

Don't own Twilight or any of the characters.

* * *

Chapter Ten

TPOV

I sighed as another building crumbled beneath its own weight. The former city of the Underworld was slowly falling apart due to this pathetic and useless war. And, ever since the beautiful Kallisto had vanished…well tempers had just escalated. Many believed that the supposed enemy, Baladeva, had kidnapped her because of his impatience at her delay of their marriage.

But I knew…know the princess. She was… is far too strong and hardheaded to simply go in silence. She probably escaped and hid somewhere, hopefully not around here. She would be devastated if she saw what our home had become.

A wasteland… a mere shadow of what it had once been. And to think at one point, this balcony had the perfect view of both sides of our world. I rested my elbows on the edge and placed my head in my hands. Was all of this my fault? Was I being punished for my ambitions?

"You know you could end this all if you would simply surrender. You and I both know that with the princess missing, it is the only way to save this place." I rolled my eyes and did not reply. "You gain nothing in ignoring me, my lord. Eventually you will have to heed my advice." I faced the man behind me.

"Surrendering to you would mean the end of everything we consider to be home, giving up on what the princess would have wanted. If my people think life has taken a turn for the worst now, nothing will be left if I allow you to take control. Our princess refused to give in to you and I will follow her."

"But, my lord…"

"It would be quite wise if you left now..."

He gave me one last look before vanishing into the darkness. I sighed once more. Baladeva… what has made him become this way? He and I were so close as children. Mother always thought that siblings, especially brothers, should be the reason for new beginnings…. Not this.

I lifted my hands from the balcony and left, trying to forget the image that had been burned into my eyelids. What would Kallisto think… if she could see how far we had fallen since her disappearance?

I found myself walking down a familiar hallway, one I had often walked down when the princess was a young child. She had been plagued by multiple nightmares, often of things that had long since happened. And every night, she called for me, begging me to make them leave her by telling her stories. Thankfully, that little episode of her life ended within the first 300 years, but that did not make this hallway unknown to me.

I pushed open the large silver door, hearing the hinges squeak from lack of use… it was the first time it had been opened in a century. I looked around her room, allowing my mind to fill in what was missing.

My daughter dancing around the room, a carefree and elated expression adorning her face, not concerned about anything around her.

**Virtus est non absentis vereor , tamen quinymo ratio ut alius est magis maximus quam vereor. fortis may non ago forem , tamen cautus operor non ago procul.**

"Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgement that something else is more important than fear. The brave may not live forever, but the cautious do not live at all." (Latin translation is a little off but its close enough.)

I smiled as I ran my fingers over the old writing, reciting the familiar verse. The color in the tiles had long since faded, as had the other tiles in the rest of the palace. Kallisto was the one who loved seeing them glow and sparkle, plus she was the only one who knew how to do it.

"It seems we both had the same idea." I turned my head from the wall, still running my fingers over the letters. My stunning wife joined me in the room. "There is not a day that goes by where I wonder if all of this was my fault. I was the one who insisted on the marriage…who forced her into it."

I gently took her face into my hand and smiled sadly, "I believe that she would have left regardless of her situation. You and I both know that she was not happy here, despite her little show. I probably should not have locked her in here…given her a chance to experience the world." She nodded and turned towards the writing. She tried to touch it, make it come alive like our daughter could. When nothing happened, she leaned into me, tears filling her eyes.

"I miss her dancing colors."

"As do I, my love…. As do I."

And another building crumbled into dust.

BPOV

"Bella, you've been staring at this for hours….they are bones, they're not going to get up, start dancing, and tell you everything." I ignored Emmett's comment as I circled around the lab table, carefully going over and re-examining what was left of Mike. The Cullen kids felt it necessary to join me, probably because Charlie didn't want to baby-sit me again.

"They do speak Emmett. You just have to shut up long enough to listen."

Thankfully, silence fell over the group again. Edward was really the only one being a bit helpful. He handed me anything I asked for and wrote down what I said about it, if I said anything.

Emmett got bored again… oh dear god. "Bella, why did you say the star on your arm was ironic?"

I sighed. "Because it is the Star of David, one of the most religious and well known signs….and it's now been burned into me... a demon." He sighed, obviously not pleased with my uninteresting, but true, answer.

I carefully turned Mike's hand over and examined the clean break in it. I raised the knife that had been found in the bone… which was pointless because it matched perfectly. "Hmmm…." I set the bones down and pulled my gloves off.

"Emmett, since you're so bored, you get to help me." He immediately jumped out of the chair he was leaning back in, his eyes bright with excitement.

"I made a cast of someone else's hand, one that wasn't destroyed like Mike's. Actually I made multiple ones, just for this." I pulled some out of a drawer, biting my lip as Emmett shook a little at the sight.

"What? Big scary vampire afraid of a piece of plaster?" He growled at me. "Oh hush. Now, I want you to stab it as hard as you can." He froze for a moment. "Crazy demon lady say what?" I rolled my eyes. "Stab that as hard as you are able to." He shrugged and, surprisingly, let loose on the cast.

It, of course, shattered into thousands of pieces. I had done it earlier, using my demon strength (which really isn't that different from vampires. The only difference is the size the plaster ends up in), only arriving at the same result.

"Does the actual bone have the same properties as this plaster?" I smiled. Again, Edward was the only really helpful one. "Yes, I made sure that it would, for this particular experiment."

Which left only one option.

"The killer is human."

"What if it was one of us or of you and he just held back his strength?" I shook my head.

"For both sides the blood would have made it too difficult. Yours would have completely destroyed the body, leaving barely any blood to find at all. Mine would have probably left marks on the bones themselves, showing how we like to play with our food before killing it. It's the only way that makes sense."

I had been at this for days. Charlie was gone more often because of meetings in Seattle and Olympia to talk with other police stations about these murders, really leaving me with nothing better to do (plus Mrs. Newton won't shut up about how bad I am at my job and how I should be arrested… blah blah blah). So far, this kind of thing has only happened in Forks… lucky Forks.

"So you know it was human…. How do we track him?" I closed my eyes and felt around the bone. "Hand me his hip." I slowly ran my hands over the bone. There. I opened my eyes and smiled. "This is how we'll find him."

The little notch found in Mike's hip bone told me everything.

EPOV

How on earth Bella knew what that little crevice meant I'll never know. What I do know is that a little over 48 hours later, Bella found who had killed Newton. He was hiding on the outskirts of town….

"How have you been Officer Daniel?"

He glared at her. "Mr. Daniel Ackland, you are under arrest for the murder of Michael Newton and for the kidnapping of Isabella Swan. Anything you say can and will be used against you…." Ackland suddenly turned on her, his eyes gleaming with hatred and excitement.

"Don't think you're out of the woods yet princess. Many like me will follow, the mark you bear will forever haunt you. A new age is coming my lord….a new age without that bastard you call father and that whore you call mother, and a new ruler who will bring your world to its knees."

Her eyes glowed silver and I could see her nails grow; the mark on her arm caused her muscles to spasm a little. She punched him across the face as hard as she possibly could…. Well as hard as a 17 year old girl could. He hit the floor, clutching at his nose, which was freely bleeding now. "Take his shoes and bring them to me when you're done." She turned her back to the man and began to walk out.

Apparently, the genius had left an imprint on Newton's hip... an imprint that fit perfectly with the top of his shoe. He was, of course, found guilty and even admitted to it. As for his little speech to Bella, she passed it off as drug influence, which was not too far from the truth considering the fact that they found pounds of weed in his closet.

Again, genius.

Bella immediately took us home, where she ran cold water over her arm until it stopped beating. It had grown up to her shoulder, slowly beginning to cover her neck. She sighed.

"How long?" She raised her eyes to me, curious.

"How long until it…." I couldn't bring myself to say it. She smiled and encircled my neck her arms, wrapping her long legs around my waist so her forehead was pressed against mine. "Much longer than it's supposed to because I'm not going down without a fight."

_Eddie? Where did he run off to? He's probably with Bella somewhere…_

Bella released me and returned to the sink before Emmett could walk in. I frowned, feeling disappointed because it seemed like Bella didn't want to be seen with me…It couldn't be that bad could it?

Emmett and I followed her out of the kitchen and into the living room, where everyone else was.

"I need to head out. Charlie will be expecting me tonight…something about a celebratory dinner or something. My window will be open if you get bored Emmett. I have a few pranks that I've been dying to put into action."

He grinned, his eyes twinkling with mischief. Alice and Esme kissed her cheeks while Carlisle and Jasper congratulated her. "I bet you're glad that this is finally over." Bella threw her head back and laughed at Jasper's comment. "I wish I could say yes to that Jasper. Sadly, these kinds of things will never be over. No matter how many noses I break."

I was the last one she said goodbye to. But, instead of shaking my hand or hugging me, she jumped into my arms and kissed me. I heard the family gasp in shock and I felt Bella smile under my lips. She pulled away, hopped down, and ran off into the night before anyone could say anything.

"EDWARD ANTHONY CULLEN! YOU'VE BEEN HOLDING OUT ON ME! NOW SPILL SPILL SPILL!!" Wow Alice…I'm standing 4 feet from you. I acted like I hadn't heard her and went upstairs.

_Eddie's in love! Eddie and Bella sittin in a tree…_

_I'm so happy for you Edward. She truly is what you've been waiting for._

_EDWARD! YOU ARE IN SO MUCH TROUBLE BIG BROTHER! JUST WAIT TILL I GET MY HANDS ON YOU! AND ON BELLA TOO!_

I smiled as I laid down on my couch, waiting for the time to pass until I could go see her again.

BPOV

I spent the evening with Charlie and a few of his friends. "How did you figure it out Bella?" I shrugged. "Something about him seemed off when I first met him. Plus, the imprint left of Mike matches his shoes perfectly." Oh yeah by the way, I could see the demon controlling him in his eyes...but I'm not going to tell you that because I like pretending to be normal.

My mind wandered back to Edward all night. I can't believe I did that…I mean, we were not trying to hide it… really…I hope he's not angry… or disgusted….Thoughts like these plagued my mind as I reached home and prepared for bed. For the first time in a while, I took off mother's necklace and allowed my cover-up to drop. I laid down on my bed, waiting for time to pass until someone came (hopefully). Eventually, I drifted to sleep.

**_I was back home, in the Underworld. But, everything was wrong. The great city I had left behind was now in ruins. Even my old castle was destroyed. I heard screams coming from the west. I ran along the broken streets, trying to find the source of the screams._**

**_I passed by the old marketplace. Instead of games and shops, dead bodies littered the area… wait… dead? How is this possible? Shouldn't they be…._**

**_Another terrible scream reminded me of what I was doing. I searched along the road, checking in every abandoned house. The screams got louder as I got closer._**

**_At the end of the street stood a mansion… one I had never seen before. I opened the door, hearing it moan in protest as I pushed on it. The sight before me made my stomach heave._**

**_All of the women I had grown up with were lined up against the wall, their men on the other side. The men were chained to the wall, many with vicious wounds covering them….one being my father. I frantically looked around for my mother. I saw her at the beginning of the line….being raped by Baladeva… That monster…_**

**_"It's all your fault Kallisto…if you had been a good girl and done what you were told to, your mother wouldn't be suffering…"_**

**_No…no…no it can't be my fault…it can't be…_**

**_But it is._**

I woke up drenched in sweat. Edward was lying on the bed next to me, stroking my forehead. I turned my body to him, burying me head into his chest. He didn't say anything… just sat there humming.

**_"It's all your fault princess…"

* * *

_**

Please review!! I have finals coming up so updates may or may not come faster. I don't know yet. Thank you for being so patient!


	11. Chapter 11

Don't own Twilight or any of the characters. Sorry this has taken so long. I've been really busy. Hope you enjoy it!

* * *

**Chapter Eleven**

BPOV

Many nightmares haunted my once peaceful nights. They always began the same as the first, and always ended the same. But the event I saw was always different. Sometimes it would be Mother being raped, sometimes it would be Father being beaten, and other times it would be another woman or man I had grown up around being destroyed, their bodies falling beside those of my parents, their silver eyes wide open, seeming like they were watching in horror. Regardless of the event, it was always my fault.

My fault for being selfish and leaving home when it needed me most.

My fault for being a coward and not returning sooner to fulfill my promise and duty to my parents and to my world.

My fault.....

Moving on from the pity party, these nightmares made it difficult for me to sleep. Each night they would grow longer, forcing me to relive whatever event I saw that night over and over. Sometimes it was nearly impossible for Edward to wake me up because I was in so deep. Luckily, he was able to wake me all the time, though it seemed like it was getting harder and harder. So, to make things easier on both of us, I skipped sleeping through the night and took power naps all throughout the days. I had multiple alarms set on my watch and my phone to wake me up. Plus I had the Cullens, who disapproved of my idea but supported me nonetheless. One of them, usually Edward or Alice, would wake me up before I fell into a deep sleep. Though this lack of sleep was slowly taking its toll, it was worth it.

But, it was also making Edward a basket case. He continuously asked me if I needed a nap and suggested that I should be sleeping longer. He thought that as long as I didn't sleep for a number of hours straight, waking me up would still be fairly easy. I didn't want to take the chance though. I may constantly deal with death and thoughts of never seeing the world again, but when the possibility was happening to me, it was almost too much to bear.

Oh, and let's not forget my new best friend, my mark. It was absolutely fantastic. I mean who doesn't want to experience random fits and sudden searing pains throughout the day. I apologize to all of you that do and I am amazed at how you do it. Heck if I were human and this happened to me normally, I wouldn't be able to live life. I would seriously seal myself away in a box with all the morphine in the world and hope that my suffering would end soon.

Lucky humans and your drugs. At times like this, I wish they worked on me sometimes.

Anyway, getting back to the mark, it has grown in size.... oh joy. It began on my left hand. It now covers my left arm, my chest, and is beginning its way to my neck, right shoulder, and torso. I've actually lost nearly all feeling in my left arm because of this curse. Like I said, it will slowly tear me apart until there is nothing left. None of the Cullens know that I can't really feel my left side and I didn't really intend for them to find out.... until today, when I had no choice.

I was hanging out at the mansion, finishing up some paperwork for the station and watching on in amusement as Esme and Emmett tried to make me lunch. "Emmett! Turn that oven back down! We don't want to burn Bella's lunch!" Esme was scolding Emmett once again because he kept increasing the temperature on the oven. He wholeheartedly believed that my meal would cook faster if the oven were hotter. Too bad it doesn't really work that way.

As I signed my name on the last paper, I winced a bit as I felt the mark reach my right shoulder. I saw Edward, who was sitting next to me, wince as well. I knew that my stubbornness about going home and taking care of this was driving him insane. He felt that it was his fault I was suffering, and never failed to tell me that he wished he could trade places with me so I wouldn't be in pain. And I never failed to tell him that he was a stupid masochistic fool for thinking that I would ever want to trade places.

I placed the signed documents back into my bag, where they hopefully wouldn't get lost, and turned towards Edward. I saw sadness, guilt, and helplessness reflecting in his eyes. I lovingly wrapped my arms around his neck as I hugged him. "Don't worry about me Edward. As long as I have you, I will fight and I will not lose. You've given me something I want to fight for. Don't feel sad. You're helping me more than you know. I would be long gone by now, a prisoner in my own mind, if I didn't have you as my guardian angel. Please know that." He gave me a very small, sad smile before picking me up and moving into the living room. He placed us on the couch, me in his lap. His family has grown used to our closeness, though they still tease us sometimes. Alice hasn't really had the chance to go through the Spanish Inquisition with me yet, mostly because I've been avoiding it. I know that it hurts her, to think that I can't go to her and tell her anything; to be able to trust her with my darkest thoughts.

But what would I tell her? I didn't even know where I stood with Edward. I know that I want to be his for the rest of eternity,that I'll never want anyone else, and that I love him. But what about him? Surely he has someone special waiting for him somewhere, someone better suited for him. As if he was reading my mind, he swiftly leaned down and kissed me, causing all my doubting thoughts to leave. I sighed when he pulled away. He chuckled at my reluctance to let him go.

"Bella, there's something I've been meaning to ask you."

I looked up at him. I felt the fear of being pushed away and rejected enter my body, and I did my best to hide it, but I think he saw it.

"I don't really know how to ask this but, Bella will you be my...."

A sudden crash stopped him from finishing his question. Suddenly, shards of glass came flying towards us. I lifted my arm before Edward could do anything. I heard him gasp as what was left of the window hit my skin. I was actually surprised when it cut because normally my skin, since I'm normally in my demon form when I'm there. I can't help but feel completely comfortable with who and what I am in their house.

"Bella, are you alright?" Edward had immediately removed the glass and was examining my arm. As I expected, there was only a cut; no blood or pain joined it. "How..?" I shrugged.

"As the mark grows further along a limb, I begin to loose all feeling in that particular limb. It becomes useless and is really just dead weight on me."

"So you can't feel your left arm anymore?" I knew that this new information was hurting him, especially because of my stubbornness about going home and all.

"Not anymore no. Good thing I'm not left handed." I saw him try to smile, but the helplessness had returned into his eyes. I placed my good hand on his cheek as he stroked the now useless one. "Don't worry. I'm not afraid. Neither should you."

After that, things just continued. Alice finally cornered me so she could squeeze me for information when Edward was out hunting one day. "Bella!! You have got a lot of explaining to do missy! Why didn't you tell me you were dating my brother??" I laughed at Alice's fake anger.

"Because I don't really think I am." Confusion covered her face.

"You better not just be using him for one last game before you kick the bucket." My mouth dropped open at her statement.

"I would never do that! I've adored your brother since the first time I ever laid eyes on him. I've loved him for nearly a century now and I haven't even really known him for a full year yet. Like you vampires, demons usually mate for eternity. I couldn't even begin to think about using him for my pleasure because that is not what he is to me." During my little rant, I hadn't noticed that the door opened and someone had come into our conversation. All I knew was that one moment I was staring Alice down, the next I was being dipped down with a familiar pair of lips covering my own. I knew by his scent that Edward had come back. I sighed as I relaxed into his arms, enjoying this embrace. He pulled away for a moment to whisper those three little words I had been waiting for him to say.

"I love you too."

He picked me up once more and dashed us into his bedroom, leaving an angry Alice in the living room. I giggled as I heard her huff in annoyance, muttering to herself about kidnapping me to really question me. Edward chuckled, probably at her thoughts, as he turned on his stereo. The soft melody of Claire De Lune floated out, making me sink onto the couch in contentment. He quickly joined me, wrapping us in a tight embrace. Then I fell asleep to him humming what sounded like a lullaby in my ears.

And for the first time in days, my dreams were peaceful.

EPOV

I watched in silence as my Bella slept in my arms, finally sleeping peacefully. A soft smile appeared on her face as I shifted our position on the couch, so she was lying down on top of me, her head resting beneath my chin. She was so beautiful. I still couldn't believe how lucky I had become. After trying and failing to find her the first time, I feared that she was only a figment of my imagination, of some girl I had left behind and would never see again. But then, nearly a century later, there she was. I gently stroked her cheek.

"Edward" I almost cursed out loud. Had I woken her up again?

"Edward....don't take the gift from Emmett. It's filled with green jello..." I had to cover my mouth with my hand. She was sleep talking. Because of her nightmares, she had remained silent, for the most part, throughout the night. But now, with her mind at such ease, she seems to have returned to an old habit.

_Edward! Something's coming. I can't really see what though. _ Oh great....I tried to move out from underneath Bella, but of course as soon as I wasn't touching her, her eyes shot open. She turned her gaze towards me, standing right next to the door. She then re-closed her eyes. "They're friendly. Still in control of their own minds. Hopefully they're just passing through. I'll be down in a minute." I walked back to her and placed a lingering kiss on her forehead before leaving.

Once I was downstairs, my family had already invited these guests in. They stood and saluted as I entered. Then, they began speaking in a very strange language. It consisted of many clicks and hums, but with words as well. It was like a mix between some spoken language and the clicking language used in Africa. We all stared at them in confusion as they tried to communicate with us through this strange tongue. Even their thoughts were in this language. Once they realized they were getting nowhere, they conversed among themselves for a bit, hopefully trying to guess which language we spoke. Finally, one of them began to speak English.

"Uh... he-he-hello. I am Aga-than-gelos and he Chry-san-thos. Any you speak the tongue?" Why everyone turned their heads to me is still a mystery. "No I'm afraid none of us do. There is one with us who may; she'll be joining us shortly." They seemed pleased with my answer and continued to try to speak. "We search for a c-c-c-century for Highness Kallisto. She vanish during bad war. Need her back." Alice found it rather comical as to their methods of communication. In her words, they were like toddlers who spoke gibberish and broken English.

Agathangelos was a tall and skinny demon with wings. He looked very young, but then again Bella is over 3,000 years old, so there's no telling how old he really is. He was much more outgoing than his partner. His golden eyes darted around in excitement (He must not get out much). Chrysanthos on the other hand, had a much more muscular body. His arms were covered in scrapes and cuts and he had a huge sword sitting on his hip. He was quieter and I watched as his golden eyes darted around the room for any signs of danger. I saw his body relax some when he saw we were safe at the moment.

Both of them froze when footsteps came from the stairs. I turned to see Bella descending the stairs, in her demon form, wearing an absolutely gorgeous dress. Both of our guests gasped when they saw her and immediately fell to the ground, bowing their heads. She smiled as she shook her head and walked towards them. She grabbed their hands and placed a kiss on each. When they looked up at her again, short yelps were heard. Chrysanthos quickly rose and began slowly and respectfully moving his hands along the visible areas her curse had been. He began to frantically speak in their language again when she calmly placed her hand over his mouth and shook her head. He hung his low and backed away.

At this time I rose and took Bella into my arms. "You look incredible." She blushed as I kissed her cheek. I heard two growls and was about to retaliate when Bella cut my off with a few very crisp and sharp clicks to the two. They lowered their heads again, but never took their eyes off of me. "I'm assuming you know their names, but Agathangelos, meaning messenger, is the Underworld's mailman basically. He and a few others deliver messages for both people and demons. Chrysanthos, which means golden flower, is my guardian, you could say. He was my father's, but when I was born, my father moved him to protect me." That explains why they were so protective of her.

"Bella, why didn't you tell us you were a princess?" Esme asked the question we all wanted to know the answer to. Bella sadly smiled. "I ran away because I didn't want to be a princess. I wanted to avoid remembering my life there because it wasn't a life. I was existing, not living. I apologize for deceiving you all and I hope that you can forgive me." I lifted my hand to her cheek and gently pulled her face towards mine, placing a soft kiss on her lips. I smiled, "You are forgiven. Should we call you Bella or Kallisto?" She laughed.

"It doesn't matter to me. I'll answer to both."

Carlisle's curiosity got the best of him. "Bella, tell us more about your world." She wrinkled her nose as she thought about it.

"Well, it has existed since the dawn of time, but like humans, no one really wrote things down. The oldest records my father's library possess is... oh about 8,000 years I think. Anyway, around that time, his grandfather came into power. He was a very paranoid man, obsessed with prophecies and superstitions. The story is that he heard a prophecy one day that said his kingdom would be torn apart by warring twins. Well, he decided it would be best if no family, demon or human, had twins. You see, though everyone there is dead in every sense of the world, it is the afterlife. They build families with their previous loves or with new ones they meet. Then, after they've been in the afterlife for a certain amount of time, they can choose whether or not they want to return to Earth to live as a human again. Some choose not to and remain in the Underworld with their new families. So, no family was allowed to have twins. If they did, the weaker of the two would be killed. This continued for many years, until my grandfather was old enough to rule. He wanted to take power of the afterlife, not because he was a power seeker, but because he felt it was time for new flesh to rule. It took much convincing, but eventually his father agreed to it. So the twin massacre ended. Then, my father and uncle were born. And now, uncle seeks to rip the Underworld apart and create his own army to march on the world of the living."

Esme covered her mouth to stifle a gasp. Bella tore her gaze away from me and looked at Esme. "You were wondering why I didn't want to return home?" We all nodded.

"If I return, I must marry my own uncle to try and create some sense of peace in our world."

* * *

Sorry this took so long! I've been really busy with camps and sports. But I'm done for a few weeks so I'll try and write a lot.


	12. Chapter 12

****

Still don't own much... but Chrysanthos and Angel are mine!! Haha anyway hope you enjoy it! PLEASE NOTE: I WILL BE IN HAWAII FROM TUESDAY (AUG 18TH) TO NEXT MONDAY (AUG 24TH) FOR A VOLLEYBALL TOURNAMENT/ VACATION. I WILL NOT BE WRITING OR UPDATING OVER THIS TIME PERIOD! WHEN I GET BACK, I WILL DO MY ABSOLUTE BEST TO POST BUT I CAN'T MAKE ANY PROMISES! THANK YOU!

Chapter Twelve

CPOV

I watched as my Kallisto wrapped her arms around this.... I will be polite and say boy. Yes, yes I can speak and understand English, but when you travel with Agathangelos, you get pretty comfortable with not talking, since he thinks this is all a game. I rolled my eyes and refocused on the scene in front of me. The boy Kallisto had chosen turned his gaze towards me. As we stared the other down, I searched for anything I could use against him if, and possibly when, the time came. But, I saw nothing but pure adoration, devotion, and love in his eyes as they began to flicker between me and her as she spoke with the others, Agathangelos hanging on her every word. Sometimes I wonder why the boy didn't learn their language; He can understand it, but his speech....I sighed.

_Damn you vampire. _ I saw Kallisto's.... how you say... interest smirk as the thought crossed my head.

_Mind reader? _He nodded his head, keeping his eyes on her Highness.

_Now pay attention and listen to me now boy. _His eyes slowly turned back to me as I stared him down. _Hurt her in any way and my sword will meet you neck very quickly. _His eyes softened as he laughed. "I've waited for nearly a century to have her in my arms, after only barely catching a glimpse of her. I'm going to do my best.... no.... better than my best to make her happy. If I do what you think I will, I may come and beg you for that." Kallisto turned her eyes towards him, a questioning look in her eye as she raised her eyebrow. Her eyes darted between us as she carefully examined our expressions. She signed.

"Chrysanthos, I love you dearly, truly I do, but please don't scare my love away yet. I will let you know when you can." I smiled at this. Maybe she would see reason, leave this mere child, and find someone better suited for her. "And before you even think about scaring him off because you think I should be with someone like us, really think. I've had over 3,000 years to find someone back home. Yet it's taken less than 5 minutes for me to fall in love here, and less than a century to find him." I cocked my head in question as she spoke. They met before but were separated? And she still found happiness with no one else? I shook my head.

She is one very strange princess.

They, after introducing themselves, continued to ask questions until the late hours of the night. Kallisto had placed her head on Edward's chest, occasionally translating for Angel, a nickname she had given him as a child because she couldn't pronounce his name very well and she thought he was an angel because of his wings. I'll admit, it was pretty cute seeing little 100 year old Bella dashing around the halls, hiding behind her father when Angel chased her around, flying through the halls.

When Kallisto, or Bella, which she is apparently called here, fully turned her body into Edward, I knew it was time to end the questioning. He carefully picked her up, clutching her to his chest in a tight yet loving embrace, and announced that he was going to take her home. I looked towards Angel, signaling it was time for us to go. He had picked up quite a lot of English and, with a little struggle, managed to give his thanks and goodbyes to the Cullen coven. I slipped out the door before Edward did and carefully scanned the area around. Everything seemed peaceful, for now at least. Edward and Angel soon followed me, Angel repeating my look around. We silently made our way to his car and sped down the driveway. He kept her Highness in his lap as he drove, occasionally kissing her forehead or stroking her cheek when we came to a stop.

We pulled up to a small house just inside Forks' city limits. It was smaller than I had expected, but it did present a sort of warm and homey feeling, even though the lights were off and no other car was present. Edward lifted her up once more, turning towards me. "Charlie Swan is her father here and he's the Police Chief of Forks. With all the recent activity from not only your kind, but mine as well, he's left for a meeting in Seattle to discuss what the state as a whole is going to do about it. The key is under the eave of the door."

Once we were inside, he took Bella up to her room, but he did not come back down. I had already sent Angel off to look around the house and the nearby area to ensure Bella's safety. As I went up the stairs, I thought about the curse mark that now marred her Highness' once porcelain and perfect skin. She still looked radiant of course, but the mark was beginning to take its toll on her. I opened the door to her room, and immediately pulled out my sword, slamming Edward against the nearest wall.

"What are you doing in her bed?" It was the first time I had spoken all night. I normally don't like to speak because the whole actions speak louder than words idea has really grown on me. He took a deep breath and calmly looked at me. Damn it, does nothing shake this guy?

"Not usually, no. Recently Bella has been having nightmares. Sometimes she becomes trapped in them and it takes a while to wake her up. But, most of the time when I stay with her, she doesn't experience them." I lowered my sword and allowed him to move back to her. I heard the whimpers that escaped her before he was at her side again. Only once he curled himself around her protectively did they cease. I sighed. "I apologize. I was her guard for so long, and she's been missing for so long...." He nodded, understanding filling his topaz eyes. I shook my head "There is no way that you, a child no older than 120 years, could possibly understand what I'm feeling. I was supposed to protect her, keep her safe and out of harms way. Yet, here she lies before me, the curse of our kind covering her body and soon, her soul."

Contrary to what many, including Kallisto, believe.... demons actually do have souls. How else would every single demon have the chance to walk among the humans as a human? Though I have never taken up the offer, I see the changes that take place, especially in Bella. She probably wakes up everyday with a reason to even get out of bed, whether it's school, or a job, or even this boy. As much as I love swordplay and fighting, I would love to have someone as close to me as he is to her and vice versa. But now... I rested my head in my hands. Now this curse, at the rate it's growing, will destroy her before anyone can do anything.

He hummed to her all night long, trying to ignore my thoughts. It was a beautiful melody and it calmed her quickly, causing her body to sink into him, her head buried into his shoulder. I saw his eyes soften as she whispered his name into the darkness, pure love flooding his eyes. It amazed me how they could both look past the differences, and even similarities, of our kinds and simply love the other for who they were, not what. As I watched them, I knew Angel and I couldn't just steal her away to return home; it would crush her and make her even more desperate to leave home. I saw how peaceful and relaxed her body looked with Edward right by her side. I closed my eyes, remembering the times where she would awaken, screaming because of a dream.

_Bella, who was no older that 250 at the time, sat up in bed, clutching to her sheets tightly. Tears streamed down her face as she let out a scream. Tacitus and I flew into her room, my sword drawn, ready to defend her. Tacitus immediately went to her, wrapping his arms around her small waist and pulling her into a hug. He hummed an old tune to her, trying to calm her down._

_"What is it my Kallisto?" Terrified silver eyes darted around the room._

_"I'm afraid father. There was a man with a whip... he was beating another. I couldn't see their faces though. I saw blood everywhere: on the rocks nearby, the ground, the poor man's back...." He hugged her tighter. She was young and still did not fully understand what she was seeing._

Edward curiously looked at me. "What was she seeing?" I sighed, "Many of the doctors whom she spoke to believed it to be visions of the past. What the exact moment was, no one except she knows. But, the more I think about it, the more I think she was seeing what was yet to come." I raised my head, looking directly at her. Her mark was growing.

"How long?"

"Hmm...?"

"The curse... how long has she had it?"

He shrugged his shoulders, "I'd say nearly a month, maybe more." I growled at the thought and violently shoved the chair I was sitting in to the ground. I paced around the tiny room for a few moments, before punching the wall, nearly howling in anger. "I should have been there....I should have been there to protect her."

"Chrysanthos," I quickly turned, embarrassed that I had allowed my anger to get out of control and woken her, "First, I do not blame you at all for not being there. I am fine and this stupid curse is not going to beat me lying down. So stop worrying about that. Second, worry more about defending the Cullens if, and when, the time comes. I need you to remain with them should anything happen to me." I growled and narrowed my eyes at that possibility, but nodded my head, "Third, you might want to fix that wall. I don't want Chief to think that I'm torturing criminals or anything in here." She gave me a heartbreaking smile, one her mother and father were both very good at.

The next morning, Angel and I were forced to attend this strange thing called "school" with Bella and the Cullen coven. At first, Bella (which she insisted upon us calling her. Something about the royalty idea had died out... I don't really know) was a little concerned about our ability to resist not only the humans, but her beloved vampires as well. We assured them that we would take on their style of feeding until the time came for us to leave... oh great.

Anyway, when we got to school, many girls immediately came up to us and began blinking really quickly and spoke with such speed, the only words I caught were "like" and "totally." Thank the world below when Bella came to our rescue, saying that we were her cousins. Angel and Chris, from Africa and we were still learning how to speak English. Of course to that, we got stupid comments like "why are they white?" Goodness gracious, why does it matter? I wanted to shout.

But that wasn't the worst part.

There's this class called Physics. I have broken many of the 'laws' this class has accepted as unbreakable. Like the 'Law of Gravity' for instance.... even while on this planet, Angel and I have been able to simply jump in the air and take everything in from a bird's eye view.... nonsense I tell you. Then... there's one called Math. Why on earth do I care about what a sine graph looks like? As far as I can tell, the students in art class do more math than Pre-calculus. The two should really switch descriptions because I did not realize I had been signed up for an art class. If I had known and if I had wanted to draw lines and curves, I would have signed up for art.... but then again.... that would have been math.... right? And let's not get started on History. I mean, honestly....the Great Fire of Chicago was NOT started by a cow, despite what everyone thinks. Actually, my friend Agni and I were fighting against Baladeva's servants there at the time. I may or may not have accidentally set that barn on fire when I pushed a flame demon into it.... oops... when I voiced this to the woman called 'teacher', she merely smiled and laughed along with my 'class', telling me I had a wonderful imagination.

Stupid humans.....

I nearly screamed in joy when Alice and Emmett came to my rescue. But my excitement was cut short by their expressions. "Bella's in trouble."

EPOV

We were walking to lunch when it happened. We were laughing at Chris's tortured thoughts when she collapsed. Her body began convulsing, her mark glowing brightly and screams bubbling at her mouth. Angel came running up to us, scooping her up as he flew by. I followed him as quickly as I could. He led me deep into the forest before stopping and setting Bella down. I ran to her and began to do anything I could to make her fit pass quicker. Angel pulled out a vial filled with an orange liquid. He tried to make Bella drink it, but I nearly attacked him, mostly because he wouldn't tell me what it was. "Angel! Stop this nonsense!" Chris came running out of the trees, my brothers and sisters at his heels. I gathered Bella up in my arms, shifting my body slightly, giving her whatever protection my body could provide.

Angel growled at my movement and lunged at us. I curled my body around her, ready for an impact, when a sudden piercing sound froze everything. Chris pinned Angel to a tree, his sword plunging deeply into Angel's stomach. "I can not believe you. After everything we've been through, you choose now to turn your back on your own kind." Angel(I should really stop calling him that because he isn't one) only smiled.

"A new age is coming Chrysanthos. Join us, and Baladeva will reward you greatly." Chris snarled. "I'd rather die defending Bella than serve that swine, no matter the reward." Bella's fit had finally stopped and she was listening quietly. She looked at me, silently asking me to turn around. As I did, I saw tears forming in her eyes. "Angel.... I thought I could trust you... I thought we were friends.... I'm sorry... so sorry...." She began crying into my shoulder.

I can't say who looked more heartbroken: Bella or Angel. Self hatred and sadness filled Angel's eyes. "As am I princess." With one final swipe of the sword, Angel was gone. Chris sighed as he cleaned off his blade with the grass. After he sheathed it, he turned to us. "I must take Bella home now. With that curse marking her, and slowly growing stronger, she will become more and more vulnerable to traitors like him. I must take her where she will be safe."

I wanted to say that we could defend her... that we could take on any demon that came looking for her. But the words wouldn't form.... maybe because he was right... It didn't matter though. Wherever Bella was going, I would follow without a second thought or a second glance back at what I was leaving. I opened my mouth to say this, but Alice beat me to the punch.

"We're coming too."

**Hope you liked that! Please review if you want me to update faster! My schedule's getting a bit busier so I need to know if you want me to update! Thank you! No new chapters until August 25th!**


End file.
